Portrait of Nicolas Trigault in Chinese Costume

Portrait of Nicolas Trigault in Chinese Costume by Peter Paul Rubens, executed in 1617, captures the remarkable presence of the Flemish Jesuit missionary who had recently returned from China. The drawing depicts Nicolas Trigault wearing the silk robes of a Chinese scholar, attire he adopted as part of the Jesuit strategy to assimilate into the high culture of the Ming dynasty and gain access to the imperial court. Trigault famously traveled through Europe dressed this way to secure funding and resources for the Far East mission, making this portrait a potent symbol of early modern cultural exchange.

Rubens, recognized for his dynamic oil paintings, demonstrates his exceptional skill as a draftsman in this intimate study. He employed a sophisticated mixed media technique, combining black, red, and white chalk, blue pastel, and pen and brown and black ink on light brown laid paper. The artist used the varying media to define texture and volume; the chalks provide delicate modeling to the face, while the ink outlines define the structure of the elaborate costume.

While the drawing may have served as a preliminary study for a later engraved portrait, it stands alone as a highly finished example of Rubens's portraiture. The work emphasizes Trigault’s intellectual authority and the seriousness of his religious undertaking, providing a compelling historical record of this pivotal man. The drawing is a distinguished component of the collection held by the Metropolitan Museum of Art. As a culturally significant piece from the 17th century, this iconic artwork is considered part of the public domain, allowing high-quality archival prints to be widely utilized for research into Baroque portraiture and global history.