Die Balbi-Kinder

The Balbi Children

A young Van Dyck painted these three aristocratic boys while living in Genoa. Their intricately ornamented attire and elegant bearing suggest their high birth. Although traditionally entitled 'The Balbi Children,' this refers to a former owner of the painting; the two choughs on the step indicate that the sitters may in fact be members of the De Franchi family, who had choughs as a family emblem.