2-738-335 - Heritage Art/Heritage Images

Portrait of an Official, 1600s-1700s. During the Joseon period, portraiture was a popular painting genre. Families used these painted images in their ancestor-worship rites. Portraits of kings and their loyal retainers were also commissioned. This imposing figure was probably a court official, because he wears a black-lacquered horsehair cap and a lavishly embroidered panel appears on his robe. The appearance of both hands—a rare feature in official Korean portraiture—adds a note of individuality.