Hendrik van der Borcht the elder

Hendrik van der Borcht the Elder (1583 - 26 July 1651) was a Flemish engraver and still life painter of flowers and fruit, who was mainly active in Germany.

Van der Borcht was born in Brussels. Troubles in the Low Countries obliged his family to move to Germany in 1586. By 1598 they had settled at Frankenthal, where he became a pupil of the Flemish emigre Gillis van Valkenborch. Between 1604 and 1610 he was in Italy, probably in Rome. In 1627 he settled in Frankfurt, where he would die.

The Earl of Arundel, passing through Frankfurt, became the patron of his son, Hendrik the Younger (1614-1676). Van der Borcht the elder is also considered to be the teacher of the painter Sebastian van der Borcht, perhaps another son, active in Frankenthal.

He is considered a member of the school of Frankenthal. The school of Frankenthal included the painters Gillis van Coninxloo, Anton Mirou, Pieter Schoubroeck, and his son.