A ruddy man in a tilted hat raises a glass of wine and gestures toward us mid-sentence, as if we had just joined his table. Hals built him from fast, open strokes over a tinted ground, catching a passing moment rather than a pose. Whether he is a portrait sitter or a stock 'merry drinker' type is still debated; the Rijksmuseum now calls him a militiaman.
Look closer
The medal on his chest may show Prince Maurice of Orange. His glass is a berkemeyer, a Dutch wine glass with a wide conical bowl, and his open smile shows his teeth.
Looks like this
Compared by a vision model
