A double-sided notebook page by Peter Paul Rubens, dated to September 1607, has gone on public display for the first time at the Rubens Experience in Antwerp. The sheet features a quill-testing squiggle, a sketch of three robed men thought to be apostles, and a draft letter on the reverse to the painter Cristoforo Roncalli. The letter, written on behalf of their patron Eleonora de' Medici, inquires about the progress of a painting for her private chapel. The page was acquired at TEFAF Maastricht by the King Baudouin Foundation for €110,000 ($121,100) and is on long-term loan to the Rubenshuis, where it will remain until renovations are completed around 2030.
This rediscovered sheet matters because it offers rare insight into Rubens's early creative process and his role as a diplomat and negotiator in the Roman art world. The Rubenshuis holds only two drawings and ten letters from the artist, all from later periods, making this acquisition a significant addition to the understanding of his formative years. The document also highlights the influence of female patrons like Eleonora de' Medici on Rubens's career, and its return to Belgium fills a gap in the artist's known early output.