Adrianus Jacobus Zuyderland was Vincent van Gogh's favorite model during his Hague period. He appears in dozens of drawings, easily identified by his bald head and prominent white whiskers, and he was the model for the drawing which was the basis for van Gogh's later iconic painting ''

At Eternity's Gate ''Sorrowing Old Man (At Eternity's Gate)'' is an oil painting by Vincent van Gogh that he made in 1890 in Saint-Rémy de Provence based on an early lithograph. The painting was completed in early May at a time when he was convalescing from a se ...

''.

Background

A. J. Zuyderland was born at The Hague ca. 1810 and fought in the Ten days' campaign in 1831 against the Belgian secessionists and French troops supporting them, where he received :nl:Metalen Kruis 1830-1831 award, which he usually wears on his portraits. He registered at an almshouse in 1876. He is first mentioned by van Gogh in a letter to

Anthon van Rappard Anthon Gerard Alexander van Rappard (14 May 1858, Zeist – 21 March 1892, Santpoort) was a Dutch painter and draughtsman. He was a pupil of Lawrence Alma-Tadema. He was also a friend and mentor of Vincent van Gogh for about four years, who is sa ...

, dated around 19 September 1882: "... I’ve also been painting and watercoloring, and in addition I’m drawing many figures from the model as well as scratches .e. 'sketches'on the street. Lately I’ve quite often had a man from the Old Men’s Home to pose. The "Old Men's Home" was the ''Nederlands Hervormd Oude-mannen-en-vrouwenhuis'' in the Om en Bij,

The Hague The Hague ( ) is the capital city of the South Holland province of the Netherlands. With a population of over half a million, it is the third-largest city in the Netherlands. Situated on the west coast facing the North Sea, The Hague is the c ...

, and Zuyderland was subsequently identified by W. J. A. Visser in their records from the identification tab 399 on his right arm that can be made out in ''Orphan Man with Top Hat'', and which also appears in a letter sketch (left).Hulsker, Jan. The Complete Van Gogh. Oxford: Phaidon, 1980. p. 60.

Background

References

Works

Letters

General

Further reading