Currently not on view

A Nurse Showing a Mother Her Child,
1671–78

Jacob Lucasz. Ochtervelt, Dutch, 1634–1682

L.1991.1.4

The Rotterdam painter Jacob Ochtervelt specialized in domestic genre scenes. Here, a wet nurse presents a baby to the clearly delighted mother, mistress of the house. The scene is bathed in a warm, almost sacred light. The orderliness and smooth running of the household and the education of children belonged to the woman’s domain and were her primary responsibilities. Her elite social position is alluded to not only by the presence of a servant and the mother’s fur-trimmed jacket and silk dress with gold-thread trim, but also by the marble floor, the hearth’s tall column with ionic capital, the large painting on the back wall, and the silver accessories placed on the imported carpet-covered table.

Information

Title

A Nurse Showing a Mother Her Child

Dates

1671–78

Maker

Jacob Lucasz. Ochtervelt

Medium

Oil on canvas

Dimensions

92.5 × 75 cm (36 7/16 × 29 1/2 in.) frame: 132.7 × 115.6 × 8.3 cm (52 1/4 × 45 1/2 × 3 1/4 in.)

Credit Line

Lent anonymously from the J.B. Robinson Collection

Object Number

L.1991.1.4

Inscription

Signed lower right: J Ochtervelt f.1

Culture

Dutch

Type

paintings, oil paintings

Subject

infants, mothers, nurses

Sir Joseph B. Robinson by 1923; Joseph B. Robinson sale, Christie's, London, July 6, 1923, lot 77 [bought in]; by descent to Ida Princess Labia and thence to Count N.A.D. Labia

Looking at 17th-Century Dutch Painting Saturday, September 5, 2020 - Sunday, January 24, 2021

Share your feedback with us

The Museum regularly researches its objects and their collecting histories, updating its records to reflect new information. We also strive to catalogue works of art using language that is consistent with how people, subjects, artists, and cultures describe themselves. As this effort is ongoing, the Museum’s records may be incomplete or contain terms that are no longer acceptable. We welcome your feedback, questions, and additional information that you feel may be useful to us. Email us at collectionsinfo@princeton.edu.

Citation

Jacob Lucasz. Ochtervelt (Dutch, 1634–1682), A Nurse Showing a Mother Her Child, 1671–78. Oil on canvas; 92.5 × 75 cm, 132.7 × 115.6 × 8.3 cm (frame). Lent anonymously from the J.B. Robinson Collection (L.1991.1.4) https://artmuseum-beta.princeton.edu/art/collections/objects/37675

Download Image

Princeton University Art Museum supports free access to images of works in the Public Domain. You are welcome to download this image for your use.

Please select the image size you want to download.

If you are using this image for publication, we encourage you to use the following caption below. Also, If this image file is not suitable for your purposes, please refer to our Image Use and Access guidelines.

Currently not on view

A Nurse Showing a Mother Her Child,
1671–78

Information

Share your feedback with us

Letter

Effigy vessel ,
ca. 1890

Champlevé border strip ,
12th century

one of a group of panels depicting women, one with bird and tree ,
10th–13th century

Retablo of María Aldama ,
1926

Universal Exposition of 1900: Pavilion of Ecuador ,
1900

Citation

Download Image

Explore More

Hear the Conservator

Artist-in-Residence Talk: Liu Xiaodong

Currently not on view

A Nurse Showing a Mother Her Child, 1671–78

Information

Provenance

Exhibition History

Share your feedback with us

Related Objects

Letter

Effigy vessel , ca. 1890

Champlevé border strip , 12th century

one of a group of panels depicting women, one with bird and tree , 10th–13th century

Retablo of María Aldama , 1926

Universal Exposition of 1900: Pavilion of Ecuador , 1900

Explore More

Hear the Conservator

Artist-in-Residence Talk: Liu Xiaodong

A Nurse Showing a Mother Her Child,
1671–78

Effigy vessel ,
ca. 1890

Champlevé border strip ,
12th century

one of a group of panels depicting women, one with bird and tree ,
10th–13th century

Retablo of María Aldama ,
1926

Universal Exposition of 1900: Pavilion of Ecuador ,
1900