diff --git a/hamcrest/src/main/java/org/hamcrest/collection/IsMapContaining.java b/hamcrest/src/main/java/org/hamcrest/collection/IsMapContaining.java
index f4f79f3e..2b15cd4e 100644
--- a/hamcrest/src/main/java/org/hamcrest/collection/IsMapContaining.java
+++ b/hamcrest/src/main/java/org/hamcrest/collection/IsMapContaining.java
@@ -94,7 +94,11 @@ public IsMapContainingEntry(K key, V value)
         @Override
         public boolean matchesSafely(Map<? extends K, ? extends V> map)
         {
-            return map.containsKey(key) && super.valueMatcher.matches(map.get(key));
+            try {
+              return map.containsKey(key) && super.valueMatcher.matches(map.get(key));
+            catch (NullPointerException ex) {
+              return false;
+            }
         }
     }