Portret van Pieter Paulus - Jan Karel Jacob de Jonge

A formal lithographic portrait of the Dutch politician Pieter Paulus, based on an original engraving by Charles Howard Hodges.

This lithographic portrait depicts Pieter Paulus, a significant figure in Dutch political history during the late eighteenth century. The print is based on an original engraving by Charles Howard Hodges, a British artist who spent much of his career in the Netherlands. The lithograph captures the subject in a formal, bust-length pose, characteristic of the portraiture conventions of the period.

The technical execution reflects the mid-nineteenth-century Dutch tradition of reproductive printmaking. The artist employs a range of tonal values to model the subject's features and the texture of his coat. The soft, granular quality of the lithographic stone allows for subtle transitions between light and shadow, particularly across the face and the cravat. The composition is restrained, focusing entirely on the sitter, whose direct gaze engages the viewer. Below the image, the print includes a facsimile of the subject's signature, a common feature in historical portrait prints intended for documentation or collection.

Pieter Paulus was a lawyer and politician, known for his role in the Batavian Revolution. The portrait conveys the gravity and intellectual focus associated with his public persona. The work serves as a record of both the sitter and the collaborative nature of nineteenth-century print production, where lithographers often translated earlier engravings into new formats for wider circulation. The clean, neutral background ensures that the focus remains on the characterisation of the subject. This print is a fine example of how historical figures were memorialised through the medium of lithography, maintaining the aesthetic standards of earlier portraiture while utilising the technical capabilities of the printing press.