Admiral Jacob Binkes (born about 1640, died 1677)

Maes's portrait of Admiral Jacob Binkes from 1654 depicts the Dutch naval officer who served in the Second and Third Anglo-Dutch Wars and died at the Battle of Tobago in 1677. The date 1654 is somewhat surprising for an admiral's portrait — Binkes would have been barely fourteen at the time — suggesting either a later date or that the identification is uncertain. Dutch naval portraiture was a significant genre given the Republic's maritime commercial empire; admirals and captains who defended the trade routes that sustained Dutch prosperity were among the most celebrated figures in seventeenth-century Dutch culture. Maes renders his subject with the direct, confident observation of his early Rembrandtesque period.

The early portrait shows Maes's Rembrandtesque approach with warm, focused lighting and careful facial modeling. The young officer is rendered with direct, unflattering naturalism, the face modeled with warm tones against a dark background. The simple composition focuses attention entirely on the sitter's character.