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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Ruins of the Colosseum, Rome - exterior 1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Ruins of the Colosseum, Rome, seen from within 1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Ruins of the substructures of the Palace of Septimius Severus, Rome ca. 1607-1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
"In his old age, Gerard ter Borch the Elder wrote a poem entitled My Worldly Journey in which he looked back over his life:
God was with me: he gave me life:
In growing up: he always stayed with me.
Guarded and helped: until I was eighteen;
Guided me on my way: journeyed to Italy.
Stayed with me there: six years and one:
Safe from harm: nothing befell me
Generously provided for: in abundance:
And for this I must fall: at the feet of my God."
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Ruin of the apse of the Temple of Venus and Roma and the convent of S. Maria Nova, Rome 1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Ruins of the Temple of Mars Ultor in the Forum of Augustus and the tower of San Basilio, Rome ca. 1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder North side of the Arch of Constantine, Rome 1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Ponte Rotto over the Tibur 1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder Tower among ruins, Rome ca. 1607-1609 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
"In 1610 Gerard set out for Naples; again, we have just one drawing, View of Naples and Vomero [below]. He also drew the hot springs in the vicinity, the Solfatara di Pozzuoli [also below] – a site which was rarely depicted in the 17th century."
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder View of Naples and Vomero 1610 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder View of Solfatara di Pozzuoli (hot springs near Naples) ca. 1611 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder View of Solfatara di Pozzuoli (hot springs near Naples) ca. 1611 drawing with watercolor Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
"A document dated 1611 reveals that Ter Borch had planned to travel from Naples to Spain with the Spanish viceroy, who had two of the artist's paintings in his luggage. He had letters of recommendation from the Duke of Paliano and a bishop. Amazingly, he missed the boat because he had lingered too long with his Netherlandish friends! His return to the Netherlands took him via Venice, a route customarily followed by other artists. Two copies of frescoes by Tintoretto in Venice, St Roche and St Sebastian [below], probably date from 1611 or later."
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder after Jacopo Tintoretto St Sebastian (copy of Venetian fresco) ca. 1611-12 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Gerard ter Borch the Elder after Jacopo Tintoretto St Sebastian (copy of Venetian fresco) ca. 1611-12 drawing Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Moses ter Borch Portrait of Gerard ter Borch the Elder 1660 drawing on vellum Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
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| Moses ter Borch Portrait of Gerard ter Borch the Elder 1660 drawing on blue paper Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam |
"On his return to Zwolle he continued to make numerous drawings until the end of the 1620s, whereas we know of only one painting by him. In the poem quoted above, he also wrote:
My father also gave up: his old occupation:
for my use: for forty years pursued.
From this we learn that he spent forty years working in his father's profession of licensing official, collecting taxes and issuing trading licences. He devoted his artistic gifts to his children, whom he taught to draw, and one of them, Gerard ter Borch the Younger, was to become an important painter."
– Peter Schatborn, from the catalogue of a 2001 exhibition at the Rijksmuseum, published in English as Drawn to Warmth: 17th-century Dutch artists in Italy, translated by Lynne Richards