Although Ter Borch was born in the comparatively provincial eastern Dutch town of Zwolle and made his career at nearby Deventer after 1654, he was intimately familiar with painting in Haarlem, Amsterdam, and The Hague. He also travelled internationally before 1650, most importantly to depict members of the Dutch and Spanish courts at the peace negotiations of 1646–48 at Munster. This experience and his refined style and perception of character made ter Borch a very successful portraitist in and around Deventer. This portrait was probably painted there in the late 1650s.