The Doctor’s Visit by Alf Bennett

Examples of how the Old Dutch Masters represented medical issues in the 17th Century.

Sometimes you come across something really surprising. On a recent visit to the Kelvingrove Museum in Glasgow I discovered two beautiful oil paintings both entitled, “the Doctor's Visit”. The topic was certainly different from the typical Dutch landscapes, individual portraits or Still Life paintings of the time. They came from the so called Leiden school from the 1650's which was inuenced by the proximity of the renowned University and it's Medical School. Further research showed that other paintings from the same period exist with exactly the same title.

The rst painting was by Frans Van Mieris the Elder in 1657. It showed a doleful looking young woman who was staring into space, her head to one side. One hand was having her pulse taken by the doctor while the other hand lay across her midriff. On her knee was a well thumbed book. It was difcult to say for certain what was taking place. Fortunately, there was an accompanying explanation, I quote

“The pale woman in this painting is suffering from lovesickness – a medical condition thought to be cured by reading the Old Testament which is lying open on her lap”.

Thank goodness for explanation and quite a remarkable treatment.

The second painting was by Jacob Toorenvliet in 1660. Here an elegantly dressed woman was lying in bed, while a doctor was examining a ask of urine. This again resulted in the diagnosis of Lovesickness, a malady for which apparently at the time there was no known cure.

There was obviously a lot of it about in the mid 17th Century. Both oil paintings were beautiful with incredible ne detail. They must have hung on the walls of a rich merchant, certainly an unusual topic. How things have advanced since this time and lovesickness does not appear to be an identied condition nor is there a recognised treatment on the NHS.

If you wish to view pictures of these paintings they are available on the internet.