Delft · Golden Age · Commented timeline
Vermeer in 25 dates
From his baptism in 1632 to his death in debt in 1675: a short life, documented in fragments, transformed by the painting.
This timeline connects archives, family, guild, art market and masterpieces. Some dates are separated from the approximate dates of the paintings.
Start in 1632
The short answer
A career spanning twenty-two years
Johannes Vermeer born in Delft in 1632, became a master painter and married in 1653, reached full maturity around 1658 -1667, then suffered the economic crisis of 1672 before dying in 1675.
The archives show him less solitary than one imagines: son of an art dealer, member then dean of the guild, solicited expert and painter supported by local collectors. But its production remains exceptionally low.
Important: Vermeer dated very few paintings. The periods indicated "towards" or in the form of intervals are estimates from catalogs, not dates written on the works.
1632 - 1675
The 25 essential dates
Unroll Vermeer's life from childhood to Rampjaar. Each image is displayed in full and can be opened in large format.
Birth and baptism in Delft
Johannes was baptized on October 31 in the Nieuwe Kerk, Reformed Church in Delft. He is the second child of Reynier Jansz and Digna Baltens. His father worked as a weaver, innkeeper and art dealer.
Family moves to Mechelen
The Vermeers live in the Mechelen Inn on the Delft Markt. Young Johannes therefore grew up in contact with travelers, collectors and paintings that his father negotiated.
A training still unknown
No apprenticeship contract was found. Leonaert Bramer, Carel Fabritius and several artist circles were proposed, without decisive proof. This gap is one of the great enigmas of his biography.
Death of Reynier Jansz
Vermeer's father died in October. Johannes probably takes over part of his activities as an art dealer and the responsibilities linked to the family inn.
Marriage to Catharina Bolnes
On April 20, Vermeer married Catharina in the Catholic Church of Schipluiden. He joined Maria Thins' family and soon settled in the Catholic district of Delft.
Admission to the Saint-Luc guild
On December 29, he became a master painter at the Delft guild. This registration allowed him to sell his works under his name, to welcome students and to officially practice the art trade.
Diane and her companions
This great mythological scene belongs to its beginnings. The dark and monumental composition shows how young Vermeer is still far from the small, bright interiors that will make him famous.
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Christ in Martha and Mary
His largest preserved canvas confirms his ambition as a history painter. Light, gestures and the opposition between action and contemplation, however, announce his future research.
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Saint Praxède, attribution discussed
The signed and dated canvas, inspired by Felice Ficherelli, is generally associated with Vermeer but its status continues to be discussed. It reveals the role of copying in the training of young painters.
The Matchmaker
Dated and signed, the work marks its passage to the genre scene. A male character on the left is often interpreted as a presumed self-portrait, without documentary certainty.
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A sleeping servant
Vermeer tightens space around one woman. Under the painting currently, reviews have revealed deleted elements: it simplifies the scene to increase silence.
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Van Ruijven's circle
Vermeer borrowed 200 florins from Pieter van Ruijven and Maria de Knuijt, probably his main patrons. Their collection would have absorbed a considerable part of his production.
The Officer and the Girl laughing
The scale contrast, the wall map and the light coming from the left establish a now recognizable spatial vocabulary. The spectacular effect alone does not prove the use of a camera obscura.
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The E-reader at the window
The curtain, the reflection and the letter construct a psychological scene. The restoration completed in 2021 made visible the Cupid painted by Vermeer on the wall and then covered after his death.
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The alley
Vermeer paints a Delft facade with exceptional poetic precision. The identification proposed with the Vlamingstraat renews the reading of this urban landscape without removing all the uncertainties.
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The Milkmaid
A servant pours milk into an interior reduced to a few objects. The bread, wall and apron are constructed by touches of color and bright accents that give an almost tactile density to everyday life.
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View of Delft
The panorama of his hometown transforms architecture, clouds and water into a theater of light. Marcel Proust will later do this painting a major literary symbol.
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First term as dean
Vermeer was elected hoofdman, or dean, of the guild of Saint-Luc for two years. This function contradicts the romantic image of an artist totally isolated or unknown to his contemporaries.
The Woman with the Lute and the Ewer
Around these years, Vermeer perfected his solitary figures near a window. Cards, beads, letters and instruments connect domestic intimacy to the outside world.
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The Girl with a Pearl Earring
This trony is probably not the portrait of an identified person. The turban, the pearl and the half-open mouth construct an imaginary presence intended for the amateur market.
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A very productive maturity
The Lacemaker, The Woman with the Scales, The Mistress and the Handmaid or The Art of painting belong to a mastery phase: calm geometry, directed light and suspended gestures.
Expertise in The Hague
Vermeer is one of the painters called upon to examine paintings presented as Italian. With his colleagues, he concludes that they are worthless and are not great masters: proof of his expert activity.
Second term in the guild
He was elected dean again. After the death of his mother, he also inherited the Mechelen Inn, although his daily life remained with Catharina and Maria Thins.
The Rampjaar breaks the market
The invasion of the Republic causes an economic crisis. The painting trade collapses; Vermeer, who has to feed a large family, sells almost nothing and accumulates debts.
Death, debts and inventory
After an illness described by Catharina as very brief, Vermeer died in December at age 43 and was buried in Oude Kerk. His widow remains with eleven children, creditors and paintings which today allow them to reconstruct their house.
After 1675
Rediscovery is not immediate
The Dissius sale of 1696 brought together twenty-one works attributed to Vermeer, proof that an important core had remained grouped. However, his name gradually faded behind those of Pieter de Hooch or Gabriel Metsu. In the 19th century, Théophile Thoré-Bürger collected the clues, published his research and contributed decisively to making "the Sphinx of Delft" famous.
Frequently asked questions
Understand the timeline
When was Johannes Vermeer born?
He was baptized on October 31, 1632 at the Nieuwe Kerk in Delft. His exact day of birth is undocumented.
When did Vermeer die?
He died in Delft in December 1675, aged 43, after a very brief illness whose cause remains unknown.
How many children did Vermeer have?
Sources mention fourteen or fifteen births; eleven children survive early childhood.
Who taught the painting in Vermeer?
His master is not identified. Leonaert Bramer and Carel Fabritius are often cited, but there is no evidence to decide.
Was Vermeer famous during his lifetime?
He was esteemed in Delft, twice elected dean of the guild and paid dearly by amateurs, but his clientele was narrow and his production very limited.
Why is 1672 a decisive date?
The Rampjaar causes war and economic crisis. The art market collapses and Vermeer's finances deteriorate rapidly.
How many Vermeer paintings do we know?
According to catalogs and award debates, approximately 35 to 37 paintings are generally recognized.
Where did Vermeer live?
He was born, worked and died in Delft. Its main places of life are concentrated around the Markt and the Oude Langendijk.
Verified institutional sources
Rijksmuseum - texts and chronology of the Vermeer exhibitionMauritshuis - Johannes Vermeer, life and workNational Gallery - biography of Johannes VermeerMetropolitan Museum of Art - Johannes Vermeer (1632 -1675)Editorial control: August 13, 2026.
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