Anna Elisabeth Ruysch

Place: The Hague

Born: 1666

Death: 1754

Biography:

Anna Ruysch (baptized 19 December 1666, in The Hague – buried 7 January 1754, in Amsterdam) was a Dutch Golden Age flower painter. She was the daughter of Maria Post and Frederik Ruysch, a preeminent botanist and anatomist. Anna Ruysch painted less frequently after she married the paint dealer Isaak Hellenbroek on July 6, 1688. Their business on the Damrak in Amsterdam was quite successful. In 1742, her husband Isaak, who served as deacon in the Reformed Church, was listed as having the same income as his illustrious sister-in-law Rachel Ruysch: 2500 guilders. The couple had at least six children, three of whom lived to adulthood: Elisabeth Susanna, baptized 1689; Frederik Hendrik, baptized 1697; and Anna Geertruijd, baptized 1707. After her husband's death in 1749, Anna and her son continued to run the paint business. Anna died at age 87 in Amsterdam in 1754.