Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of Art
AT-00011361An Old Man Seated at a Table, His Head Resting on His Right Hand (recto); The Healing of Tobit (verso)
About the Artwork
Ferdinand Bol was one of the most prominent pupils and followers of Rembrandt van Rijn, for whom drawing played a central role in his workshop practice and teaching. This image of a man within a darkened interior before a window—perhaps a scholar or philosopher—is similar to compositions of saints as well as portraits that Rembrandt made in the 1630s and 1640s. Bol was quite interested in the theme, portraying similar figures in at least two paintings, ten drawings, and four etchings. Like Rembrandt, he employed an expressive but controlled use of ink wash, emphasizing the psychological interiority of the sitter with dramatic shading. The verso (back) of the drawing features a quick sketch by Bol after another of Rembrandt’s compositions, Tobit Healing his Father’s Blindness, 1640–45, held today in the CMA’s collection (1969.69).
Provenance
Unidentified 17th century collector 1700s: Private Collection, England December 6, 2024: (Millea Brothers Auctioneers, Boonton, NJ) ?–2025: (Benjamin Perronet, Paris, France, sold to The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH) June 9, 2025–: The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH
Data retrieved from the Cleveland Museum of Art on October 8, 2026. The museum may have updated its record since.
Quick Overview
- Artist
- Ferdinand Bol (Dutch, 1616–1680)
- Date
- c. 1640s–50s
- Medium
- Pen and brown ink, brown wash, black ink framing lines (recto); pen and brown ink (verso)
- Dimensions
- Sheet: 18 x 15.7 cm (7 1/16 x 6 3/16 in.)
- Type
- Drawing
- Classification
- Drawing
- Department
- Drawings
- Credit line
- Purchase from the J. H. Wade Fund
- Accession no.
- 2025.142
More by Ferdinand Bol in museum collections
Public collection via the Art Institute of Chicago
AT-00001267
An Old Man Seated at a Table, His Head Resting on His Right Hand (recto)
Ferdinand Bolc. 1630s · Drawing
Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of Art
AT-00011362
Public collection via the Cleveland Museum of Art
AT-00011363
Public collection via the Metropolitan Museum of Art
AT-00014585
Open-access museum record · AT-00011361
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