Portrait of Elisabeth Bellinghausen (c.1520- after 1570)

This small painting is half of a diptych made by Bartholomäus Bruyn for the Cologne couple Elisabeth Bellinghausen and Jacobus Omphalius. They probably commissioned the diptych on the occasion of their engagement. Elisabeth is holding a sprig of bittersweet, which was the attribute of unmarried couples in Cologne portraits. Elisabeth’s braids also refer to the engagement period, as married women wore their braids under their cap.