Cornelis de Vos: Portait of Elisabeth of Cornelia Vekemans (1625)

(Museum Mayer van den Bergh, Antwerp, Belgium)

This beautiful portrait is a part of a serie of a complete family. The girl on the painting is a daughter of Joris Vekemans (1590-1625), a wealthy merchant from Antwerp, and his wife Maria van Ghinderdeuren. Joris and Maria commissioned a portrait for each family-member by Cornelis de Vos - in total 6 paintings. The exact identity of this girl is not entirely sure. She is either Elisabeth (1617-1628) or her sister Cornelia Vekemans (1618-1635). This means that the girl is either 7 or 8 years old. The painting was left unfinished as the client Joris Vekemans died early  when this painting was done in 1625.