As envoy of the States-General of the Netherlands, Hieronymus van Beverningk took part in many diplomatic negotiations, including the Peace of Aachen in May 1668. The state documents on the table mention the city’s Latin name Aquisgrani. The picture frame emphasizes the stateliness of the sitter and corresponds with that of his wife, Johanna le Gillon. In the cartouche at the bottom is his motto, in translation: ‘Seek thyself, not outside thyself.’