Portrait of Jan Pranger

1742

Jan Pranger was director-general of the Dutch West India Company on the Gold Coast (now Ghana) in West Africa from 1730 to 1734. Here he is seen standing in his office in the Dutch trading post Fort Elmina. All the details underscore the importance of his position: the house slave with the parasol, the commander’s baton, and the monogram GWC (of the Chartered West India Company) on the tablecloth.