Jens Juel (b. Balslev, Funen 1745, d. Copenhagen 1802)
Purchased by The Museum of National History at Frederiksborg Castle in June 2012.
Portrait of adviser to the king and merchant Niels Ryberg (1725–1804). Unsigned. Inscribed on the reverse: “Niels Ryberg Conferents Raad Herre til Friderichs gave og Øebierregaard fød 14 September 1725 død 29 Augusty 1804. Juel pinxit 1798”. Pastel on paper. Visible size 51×39 cm. Period frame.
Ellen Poulsen, A Catalogue Raisonné of the Works of Jens Juel no. 679, reproduced vol. II p. 435.
Provenance: Svanholm manor, handed down in the Bille Brahe family.
The pastel here is, together with two others of Niels Ryberg's son Johan Christian Ryberg (1768–1832) and his daughter-in-law Engelke Charlotte Ryberg (1771–1846), née Falbe, a study for the large and known work “Det Rybergske familiebillede” (The Ryberg Family) at Statens Museum for Kunst (The Danish National Gallery). Ellen Poulsen mentions that all three portraits were drawn in 1797 as studies for the large painting from the same year. The date on the reverse of the present portrait - 1798 - seems to be wrong then. In the work here Niels Ryberg is sitting just like in the large painting, but without a hat. The drawings of his son and daughter-in-law are also mentioned in Ellen Poulsen's Catalogue Raisonné as no. 680 and 681.
Please note: The item is subject to the Anti-Money Laundering Act. In the event of a hammer price of DKK 50,000 or more, including buyer’s premium, the buyer must submit a copy of a valid photo ID and proof of address in order to collect the item.
Paintings, 6 June 2012