Did Michiel Janszoon van Mierevelt’s ‘A Bearded Old Man with a Shell’ (c.1606) influence the composition of Sir Peter Lely’s iconic 1660 self-portrait?

The impact of Van Dyck’s Last Self Portrait c1640-41(NPG 6987) on Peter Lely’s own self-depiction (NPG 3897) of c.1660, has long been acknowledged.1 However, in responding to the research question posed in the title, it will be argued that the composition of Lely’s iconic image was also shaped by a powerful painting in the Royal Collection Trust (RCIN 403956), by Michiel Janszoon van Mierevelt (1567-1641), now known as A Bearded Old Man with a Shell. The grounds for this position are two-fold: clear similarities in the composition, tonal range, and iconography of the paintings; and key aspects of the provenance of the Van Mierevelt.