Vermeer's Girl with a Pearl Earring

Girl with a Pearl Earring is an oil painting by Dutch Golden Age painter Johannes Vermeer, dated c. 1665, and became known by its present title towards the end of the 20th century after the large pearl earring worn by the girl portrayed there.

It hangs in the Mauritshuis in The Hague.

Scientific research of the painting by Johannes Vermeer, known as Girl with a Pearl Earring (c. 1665), has found :
• the girl was originally painted before a green curtain in the righthand side of the painting, which dramatically changes the black void she appears in now.
• Vermeer’s signature can be discerned in the top left hand corner of the painting, and
• the girl has eyelashes, which makes her more personal.

In addition, the earring has no discernible hook and the lead white pigment used to create the earring was mined from the UK’s Peak District.

Lead white was also used in other significant areas of the painting including her face and collar.

The research team was led by Mauritshuis paintings conservator Abbie Vandivere.

Websites: www.mauritshuis.nl/en/girlinthespotlight and www.vivitholland.com