Back to search results

BARON JACOB DERK BURCHARD ANNE VAN HEECKEREN TOT ENGHUIZEN FROM THE MIDDLETON WATERCOLOR ALBUM

Creator(s):

Currently in storage


About this object

As the son of Baron Evert Fredrick van Heeckeren van Enghuizen and Countess Henriette Jeanne of Nassau La Lecq, Baron Jacob Derk Burchard Anne van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen (1791-1884) was of distinguished Dutch lineage. Details of his youth are sparse, save that he began his career as a naval officer. By 1814 he had shifted to diplomatic work, first acting as Secretary to the Legation in Lisbon and then those in Stockholm and Berlin. Jacob was appointed the Dutch chargé d’affaires in St. Petersburg in 1822-23 and soon promoted to Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary. Opinions of Jacob were decidedly mixed—though admired for his knowledge and wit, he was disliked for his cold and calculating personality. Countess Ficquelmont, wife of the Austrian ambassador to Russia, aptly summarized these impressions in her diary: “[he is] everything that is dangerous to society; and yet I am thrilled to have him in my salon again.” While posted in St. Petersburg, Jacob became acquainted with Georges d'Anthès, a Russian cavalry officer who he later adopted. After d'Anthès mortally wounded Alexander Pushkin in a duel in 1837, Jacob was recalled. He was named Envoy Extraordinary and Minister Plenipotentiary to Austria in 1842 and held this office until 1875. Jacob also served as Minister of State for the Netherlands from 1872 until his death in 1884.

The bust-length portrait features Baron Jacob Derk Burchard Anne van Heeckeren tot Enghuizen facing partly left, eyes looking forward, against a background of grey clouds. The young man wears a black coat over a green-grey waistcoat and a white shirt with a white cravat.

Object name:
BARON JACOB DERK BURCHARD ANNE VAN HEECKEREN TOT ENGHUIZEN FROM THE MIDDLETON WATERCOLOR ALBUM
Made from:
Watercolor on paper
Date made:
1823-1835
Size:
H.6 7/8 in., W. 5 1/4 in.

Detailed information for this item

Catalog number:
52.39.45
Signature marks:
Inscription Baron de Hecekeren Bottom of page In cursive
Credit line:
Museum Purchase, 2004