Portrait of a Young Man with a Lute

Originally, the painting adorned the sacristy of St Gall Church in Liběchov whose decoration Molitor worked on in 1741. The Liběchov estate in those days was in the possession of Jan Jáchym Pachta of Rájov (von Rayhofen). Portraits depicting a lute were popular themes in portraits of painters and self-portraits. In this case, however, the portrait might depicts one of Pachta’s sons, namely Arnošt Karel, lord of the Cítoliby estate and organizer of the local musical life. Molitor arrived in Prague in 1730 where he was active for the rest of his life, specializing mainly in fresco painting but also working as a portraitist.