Pieter Borsseler or Pieter Borselaer (1633/1634 Middelburg - in or after 1687, Middelburg) was a

Dutch Dutch or Nederlands commonly refers to: * Something of, from, or related to the Netherlands ** Dutch people as an ethnic group () ** Dutch nationality law, history and regulations of Dutch citizenship () ** Dutch language () * In specific terms, i ...

portrait painter who was prominent in England during the second half of the 17th century. Borsseler was born in

Middelburg Middelburg may refer to: Places and jurisdictions Europe * Middelburg, Zeeland, the capital city of the province of Zeeland, southwestern Netherlands ** Roman Catholic Diocese of Middelburg, a former Catholic diocese with its see in the Zeeland ...

. He was a student of

Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert (1613 – 23 January 1654) was a Dutch Republic-born Flemish Baroque painter. Biography Willeboirts Bosschaert was born in Bergen op Zoom, where his Catholic family had moved in the late sixteenth century. He moved ...

Antwerp Antwerp (; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and a Municipalities of Belgium, municipality in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is the capital and largest city of Antwerp Province, and the third-largest city in Belgium by area at , after ...

between 1651 and 1654. He eventually returned to Middelburg, but painted between 1665 and 1679 in England. In 1681 he is reported to be in

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 from 1684 and 1687 in Middelburg again. Borsseler's earliest known dated work is from 1664, but his signature work was his painting of the antiquarian Sir

William Dugdale Sir William Dugdale (12 September 1605 – 10 February 1686) was an English antiquary and herald. As a scholar he was influential in the development of medieval history as an academic subject. Life Dugdale was born at Shustoke, near Colesh ...

(1665), which established his distinctive sober and melancholic style. Borsseler also painted the portraits of Dugdale's wife and of Orlando Bridgman that are at Dugdale's seat of

Merevale Hall Merevale Hall is a private country house in Merevale, near Atherstone, Warwickshire, England. It is a Grade II* listed building. The estate descends from Merevale Abbey which once stood on the site. The Manor of Merevale was granted in 1540 t ...

. Several paintings of the Hoby family are at

Bisham Abbey Bisham Abbey is a Grade I listed manor house at Bisham in the English county of Berkshire. The name is taken from the now lost monastery which once stood alongside. This original Bisham Abbey was previously named Bisham Priory, and was the t ...

, Buckinghamshire, most notably his sensitive picture of the elderly Mrs Peregrine Hoby. Borsseler also painted the writer Samuel Butler, now in the National Portrait Gallery, and was probably responsible for the posthumous "Chesterfield portrait" of

William Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's nation ...

, which is based on the

Chandos portrait The Chandos portrait is an oil painted portrait thought to depict William Shakespeare (1564–1616). Painted between 1600 and 1610, it may have served as the basis for the engraved portrait of Shakespeare used in the ''First Folio'' in 1623. It ...

. His studio may also have painted the anonymous portrait of a woman now in the National Gallery.Portrait of an Unknown Woman
/ref> Borsseler's style is closest to fellow Anglo-Dutch artist

Gerard Soest Gerard Soest ( – 11 February 1681), also known as Gerald Soest, was a portrait painter who was active in England during the late 17th century. He is most famous for his portraits of William Shakespeare and Samuel Butler (poet), Samuel Butler, but ...

, who coincidentally also painted Butler and a posthumous portrait of Shakespeare.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Borsseler, Pieter 1630s births 1680s deaths Dutch Golden Age painters Dutch male painters Painters from Middelburg