Portrait of Nicolas Trigault in Chinese Costume

Peter Paul Rubens

1617 · Black, red, and white chalk, blue pastel, and pen and brown and black ink on light brown laid paper · Drawings and Prints

This magnificent costume study is also an affecting portrait of Nicolas Trigault, a Flemish Jesuit missionary to China. Rubens, who had close ties to the Jesuit college of Antwerp, made the drawing when Trigault visited the city to raise funds and recruit new missionaries. The costume combines a Korean cap and the robe of a Chinese scholar, conveying the Jesuits’ desire to assimilate into Chinese culture while at the same time acknowledging and keeping a certain distance from it. Rubens beautifully captured the cut, texture, and weight of the robe but also elaborated on its colors in the Latin inscription.

Artist

Peter Paul Rubens

Date

1617

Medium

Black, red, and white chalk, blue pastel, and pen and brown and black ink on light brown laid paper

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

Purchase, Carl Selden Trust, several members of The Chairman's Council, Gail and Parker Gilbert, and Lila Acheson Wallace Gifts, 1999