Jan van Noordt (c.1623/4-1676) created some of the most flamboyant and expressive paintings of the Dutch Golden Age, such as Susanna and the Elders and Portrait of a Boy with a Falcon. Yet little was known about his life and the many misattributions of his works have hidden his significance. David de Witt untangles fact from fiction in the first comprehensive study of the life and work of Jan van Noordt.

De Witt offers a detailed biography based on a thorough review of the documentary evidence. He traces Van Noordt's origins back to a prominent musical family, details his artistic development under the guidance of prominent Amsterdam painter Jacob Adriaensz Backer, and reveals his synthesis of the styles of the two dominant Netherlandish artists, Rubens and Rembrandt. Using a systematic analysis of technique, manner, and approach to form, de Witt proves that over half the paintings and drawings presently attributed to Van Noordt are not his work - virtually recasting the accomplishments of an artist whose vibrant, often daring works challenge our concept of seventeenth-century Dutch art.