Woman with a Lute, early 1660s
Johannes Vermeer (Dutch, 1632–1675)
Oil on canvas
Technical Glossary
Johannes Vermeer (Dutch, 1632–1675)
Oil on canvas
20 1/4 x 18 in. (51.4 x 45.7 cm)
Bequest of Collis P. Huntington, 1900 (25.110.24)
In this work of the early 1660s, a young woman in an ermine-trimmed jacket plays a lute and looks intently out the window. The viola da gamba on the floor and songbooks on the table suggest that she may be waiting for a male visitor. The canvas has suffered from abrasion, especially in the foreground, where the paint has also darkened with age.
