Jan Nicquet, by Hendrick Goltzius

The subject is shown in a three-quarter view wearing a formal ruff and a dark cloak, holding a pair of gloves in his left hand. His family coat of arms, featuring three ploughshares and two stars, appears in the upper right. Complex calligraphic inscriptions in Latin and Dutch frame the portrait, providing moralizing commentary on the subject's life.

Jan Nicquet was a prominent 'liefhebber' (art lover) whose collection of art and natural wonders exemplifies the early modern bridge between commerce and natural philosophy. The inscription 'Iusta Corpus Ratione guberno' (I govern the body with right reason) reflects the Neo-Stoic and Neoplatonic values of the Haarlem intellectual circle, emphasizing the soul's dominion over the material self.