| Commentary | On 19 April 1657, Wouter Oorthoorn, from Amsterdam, broker, 28, assisted by his father Willem Woutersz., living on the N.Z. Achterburchwal, was betrothed to Christina van Dien, from Amsterdam, 20, assisted her aunt Susanna Pieters, living on the Singel (DTB 477/179). Willem Woutersz. Oorthoorn, born about 1599, was a tailor born in Dinslaken in Germany. Susanna Pieters, the sister of Christina's mother Catalijna Pieters, and Catalijna Pieters were daughters of the painter Pieter Isaacksz. On 6 September 1658, Wouter Oorthoorn and Christina van Dieden had their son Willem baptized in the O.K. in the presence of Jochem van Dieden and Hendrick Abrahamsz. (DTB 9/214). Jochem van Dieden (or Dien), of R 23405 of Montias2, was Christina's father. (She was baptized in the N.K., as the daughter of Jochem van Dien and Catlijna Pieters, on 8 March 1637 (DTB 42/12)). For the testament of Jochem van Dien, see the NOTES to R 36114. Willem Woutersz. van Dien was buried in the N.K. on 25 September 1673 (DTB 1056/88). In the INTRO of an insolvent inventory dated 17 March 1646, Wouter van Oorthoorn was said to be a notary's clerk (R 918 of Montias1), but he was then only about 17 years old. By the time he was betrothed, he had become a broker. The notary Abraham van Oorthoorn may have been his brother. A portrait of Pieter Isaacksz. (of INVNO 751) with his family (R 811 of Montias2) was said to be the greatgrandfather of the inventariante (by mistake for the grandfather). Willem Woutersz. Oorthoorn, the father of Wouter, was said to be 55 in the following deposition dated 14 April 1654. Willem Oorthoorn, 55, along with the painter Pieter Codde, 53, the tailor Hendrick Paulisz. Konraetsbergh, 47, the painter Jan de Keersgieter, 56, and the tailors Hendrick Jansz. Welle, 54, Willem Bloem, 49, and Hendrick Pietersz. Lansienck, 42, all living in Amsterdam and exercising their trade there, declared at the request of Jan Molenaer, artist-painter, that the dispute between Molenaer and Herman Coerten had been referred to them (witnesses) as arbiters and that they had decided Molenaer should deliver to Coerten a painting as good as the one that his (Coerten's) brother had received (from Molenaer) and that, in counterpart, Coerten would have to hand over the goods and clothing that Molenaer had deposited with him. On 13 June 1654, Harmen Courten, tailor, had notary Hellerus insinuate Pieter Codde, painter, Hendrick Pietersz. Lansinck, Willem Woutersz. and Hendrick Paulusz. Coenraets Bergh, all tailors in Amsterdam, to ask them whether they, together with Willem Bloem and Hendrick Willemsz., likewise tailors, had not been arbiters in the dispute between Jan Miens Molenaer and Harmen Courten and, if so, wasn't it true that Molenaer had promised him a paiting of a vrouwtje met de rocken op haer knien in payment for a leather jerkin that Courten had made for him for 32 gulden and a few stuivers. They declared that they had indeed been arbiters but they had not known that the painting in question was part of the settlement (A. Bredius, Het verblijf van Jan Miense Molenaer te Amsterdam in Obreen's Archief voor Nederlandsche kunstgeschiedenis 7(1888-1890), p. 300). Christina van Dien remarried with the merchant Jan Dop in September 1676 in Amsterdam. The couple removed to Leiden. She died in 1680. Her post-mortem inventory was taken on 10 May 1680. It included a history painting naer de manier van Scipio Africanus, which is probably identical with een kontrefeijtsel van den overleden Wouter Oorthoorn antycqs gedaen door Eijckhout in the present inventory. Manuth identifies the portrait with a portrait historie in Toledo, Ohio, dated 1658. He argues that the portrait was probably commissioned from Gerbrant van den Eckhout at the time of Oorthoorn's marriage with Christina van Dien in 1657 (Volker Manuth, Een kindskontrefeijtsel antycqs gedaen ... Oud Holland 112(1998), p.140). Wouter's son Willem was portrayed, also by Eckhout, when he was four years old, in a goat's cart (ibid.) The poet Hieronymus Sweerts (son of the painter and printer Jeronimus Sweerts of R 32807) was a friend of Wouter Oorthoorn, as well as of Eckhout. He wrote a celebratory poem for Oorthoorn in honor of his birthday (ibid.) The exact date of Wouter Willemsz. van Oorthoorn's burial, which presumably took place shortly before the present inventory was taken, is not known. |
