Marten et Oopjen : jeunes, riches, et célèbres

Marten Soolmans in 1634, a year after
his marriage to Oopjen Coppit

They were young, famous, rich. They had their portrails made by a painter who was 'hot' in those days: Rembrandt van Rijn - himself young, famous and well to do. And just married (Marten and Oopjen celebrated their first anniversary - and waited for their first child to be born). For 400 years, they were part of private collections. Now they have been bought by the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam and the Louvre in Paris. Together. And so Marten and Oopjen will travel to and fro every so often (not too often, though...). But for now... they are home, in Amsterdam, where they came from. And until October 2016, they will be on show in the Rijksmuseum, next to the Night Watch, Rembrandt's next assignment... 

So go and admire them while you can (and if possible, today Saturday 2 July, when the museum will be free)! Admire their lace, their silk, their fashionable clothes, their jewelry - all so well rendered by Rembrandt, who painted them like princes... the 17th century jet set of Amsterdam... 

Read my entire blog (in French):
Marten et Oopjen : jeunes, riches, et célèbres: Le monde observé de mon coin nordique

Oopjen Coppit in 1634, a year after her marriage to Marten Soolmans.

Financial Literacy

Good initiative of the OECD - with Queeen Máxima - to assess the financial literacy of 15-year old kids.

In Memoriam: The Herald Tribune

"Herald Tribune!" "Herald Tribune!" Who ever saw Jean-Luc Godard's cult movie "A bout de souffle", will remember the blonde Jean Seberg selling the (then) New York Herald Tribune on the Champs-Elysées. Later, The Herald Tribune became the International Herald Tribune. And now, incorporated in the New York Times, it becomes the International New York Times. As Arthur Ochs Sulzberger's grandson (also an Arthur Ochs Sulzberger) writes, "Today, our future is global." You bet. Yet, in a way, it means that The Herald Tribune disappears altogether. So, I'll shout it once more. "Herald Tribune! Herald Tribune!"

And no, "A bout de souffle", half a century later, doesn't appear as good as it was. Or as we once thought it was. Although it's still worth seeing Jean Seberg and Jean-Paul Belmondo - and hearing the latter say, while driving a probably stolen car on one of France's typical rural roads, "Ah, c'est beau, la France..."

Whenever I drive on one of these roads, I see Belmondo, elbow on the window, cigar between his lips, and I repeat: "Ah, c'est beau, la France..."