| Commentary | In 1631, Jan Arentsz. van Naerden, living on the East side of the Brestraet, paid a tax of 250 f. (Kohier, fol. 226vo, p. 52). He was still living in the Breestraet at the time of his death, even though he had bought the house de Pellecaen on the Nieuwen Dijck from Nicolaes van Setterich on 26 March 1636 (NA 643, film 4954, fol. 144). Earlier, on 6 September 1633, he made a deposition, together with Marten Codde (of R 21399 of Montias2), Martin Papenbroeck, Isaac van Halmael (the brother of Abraham Halmael of R 29018 of Montias2), Hans Dircx Can (on whom see the NOTES to R 36384), Hans aux Brebis (of R 25592), Gerard Kuysten (brother-in-law of Pieter Pietersz. Can of R 21379 of Montias2), and Pieter, Nicolaes, and Cornelis van Bambeeck, concerning the rights of individuals to do business in Amsterdam who were not citizens of the city (Van Dillen, Bronnen tot de geschiedenis van het bedrijfsleven, R.G.P., 144(1974), p. 22). Pieter, Nicolaes (1596-1661), and Cornelis van Bambeeck II were the sons of Nicolaas van Bambeeck I (c.1570-1649) and of Elisabeth Cornelis van der Belle (Elias, Vroedschap, pp. 648-9. See also Gelderblom, Zuid-Nederlandse kooplieden, p. 215.) On 23 November 1633, Jan Arentsz. van Naerden, 60, and Elias Herckmes, 31, merchants, made a deposition at the request of Jan de Bruijn (van Berendrecht) concerning ships that had been damaged on their journeys (NA 409, film 4782, Not. Jacob and Nicolaes Jacobsz.) On 2 June 1635, three wool weavers declared at the request of Dirck Jansz. van Dorsten that they had very well known the petitioner. Two of them said that the petitioner (van Dorsten) had worked and lived in the house of Jan Arentsz. van Naerden where he supervised the wool cloth business (Van Dillen, Bronnen tot de geschiedenis van het bedrijfsleven 144(1974), p.90). Dirck Jansz. van Dorsten was perhaps the brother of the painter Jacob Jansz. van Dorsten (a pupil or epigone of Rembrandt) and of the schipper op Rotterdam Matheus van Dorsten, whose inventory was published by Bredius (Künstler-inventare, pp. 712-5). Jacob (Jacobus) van Dorsten was the brother-in-law of Geertruyt van Gherwen, from Leiden, a relative of the Rembrandt pupil Reynier van Gherwen (ibid.) On 28 August 1636, Melis Willemsz. (illiterate), 36, a worker in the wool mill belonging to Jan and Claes Arentsz. van Naerden and Jan de Bruijn van Berendrecht, declared at the request of the latter, that he (Melis Willemsz.) had not been able to live on the wages that he had been paid, as he had said to Claes van Naerden (NA 597, fol. 521, Not. Lamberti). On 13 October 1636, the honorable Jan Arentsz. van Naarden declared that he had sold to a merchant in Gorcum 3 bales of wool weighing 750 pounds (NA 414A). He was buried on 9 February 1637 in the N.K. A sum of 8 f. was paid to the church on his behalf, which defrayed the cost of ringing the bells, as was the custom for Roman Catholics. The wooden crucifix above the bedstead in his inventory confirms that he was R.C. His brother Claes Arentsz. van Naarden, a sugar refiner and merchant, was a creditor, together with Rembrandt and some other individuals, of Hendrick Uylenburgh in 1640 (Strauss, Rembrandt Documents, p. 185). He was said to be 55 years old and a dealer in wool (wollehandelaer) in a deposition dated 24 December 1633 concerning some defective wool deposited in a warehouse (NA 694B, film 4980, Not. J. Warnaerts). He was thus the younger brother of Jan Arentsz. Arent van Naarden, who was surely related to Jan and Claes Arentsz. van Naarden (perhaps Jan's son), was a cloth merchant, according to a deposition of 15 February 1639 (NA 921, Not. B. Verbeeck). |
