Woman with a Water Pitcher

A woman between window and pitcher

A young woman stands in a light-filled room, one hand opening a window, the other resting on a silver-gilt pitcher in a basin. Vermeer painted Young Woman with a Water Pitcher around 1662. It belongs to the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and was the first Vermeer to enter an American collection.

Light through white linen

Her head is covered with a white linen cloth that falls over her shoulders. Vermeer painted the light passing through the linen with pale blues and greys, so the cloth seems almost translucent.

A hand on the window

With her left hand she pushes open a leaded window. The cool light that comes through falls over the whole room. The gesture is simple, as if she has just paused.

A gilded pitcher and basin

Her right hand rests on a gilded pitcher standing in a matching basin, used for washing. Their polished surfaces reflect the blue of her skirt and the red of the carpet.

On the table, an oriental carpet and a jewel box add rich colour to the quiet scene.

A map on the wall

Behind her hangs a map of the Seventeen Provinces of the Netherlands. Maps appear in several of Vermeer’s interiors, reflecting Dutch pride in trade and geography.

Questions about Young Woman with a Water Pitcher

Where is it?

The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York.

When was it painted?

Around 1662.

What is she doing?

Opening a window with one hand while resting the other on a pitcher used for washing.

How large is it?

About 45.7 × 40.6 centimetres, oil on canvas.

Sources and image credit

• The Metropolitan Museum of Art: Young Woman with a Water Pitcher
• Wikimedia Commons: Young Woman with a Water Pitcher (Met)

Public-domain reproduction of Young Woman with a Water Pitcher (about 1662), via Wikimedia Commons (Met Open Access). Detail images are crops of the same historical painting; no reconstruction or upscaling.