Portrait of a Man with a Blue Cap, from Sibiu to National Gallery London
Brukenthal National Museum in Sibiu is in talks with the National Gallery London regarding the loan of Jan van Eyck’s “Man with a Blue Cap” (c. 1430) for the exhibition „Van Eyck: The Portraits”. This show brings together all nine known portraits painted by the artist in Europe, representing half of his works preserved worldwide.
Raluca Maria Teodorescu, interim manager of the museum, stated for curatorial that the institution had been contacted by the National Gallery with a request to loan the painting.
“We are currently in discussions regarding the possibility of obtaining the requested loan. The related procedures are being carried out in accordance with international regulations and standards on inter-museum loans,” replied the manager.
As for insurance for the transport and exhibition of the cultural asset, this will be paid for by the organizers, Teodorescu added. “The value of this insurance is confidential, in accordance with internal procedures and heritage security regulations.”
All portraits painted by Jan van Eyck (c. 1390–1441) will be exhibited together for the first time in history at the National Gallery in London, from autumn 2026 until April 2027.
Jan van Eyck is considered the father of the Northern Renaissance and the first of Europe’s great portraitists. The work “Man with a Blue Cap” is the only one created by the Flemish artist in Romania and one of the 20 works attributed to him worldwide.
About ”Man with a Blue Cap”
”Man with the Blue Cap”, painted around 1430, was acquired in the 18th century by Baron Samuel von Brukenthal. For a long time, it was believed to have been painted by the German artist Albrecht Dürer, due to the monogram AD visible in the upper left corner. However, it turned out that the monogram and the year of painting were added to the portrait later, in the 18th century, probably due to Dürer’s high market value at the time.
This work is part of the artist’s series of famous paintings, such as “Man with a Red Turban,” considered to be a self-portrait and located at the National Portrait Gallery in London, and “Man with a Ring,” located at the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna.
The Man in the Blue Cap was part of a Jan van Eyck retrospective held in Ghent in 2020. Three years later, the work was brought to Bucharest in a special show at Dacia-Romania Palace.
