The de Young will be the first venue in the American tour of paintings from the Royal Picture Gallery Mauritshuis, The Hague. This jewel box of a museum, housing one of the world's most prestigious collections of Dutch Golden Age paintings, has not lent a large body of works from its holdings in nearly 30 years. An extensive two-year renovation makes this extraordinary opportunity possible.

The exhibition features 35 paintings representing the range of subject matter and technique characteristic of 17th-century painting in the Dutch Republic. Among the works traveling to the United States is the Mauritshius' celebrated masterpiece Girl with the Pearl Earring (c. 1665) by Johannes Vermeer and the enchanting The Goldfinch (1654) by Carel Fabritius.

The painting Vase of Flowers by the gifted Rachel Ruysch, one of the few female painters of the Dutch Golden Age, is being restored especially for the American tour. This exhibition is organized by the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco with gratitude for exceptional loans from the collection of the Mauritshuis, The Hague.