Old Master Painting, Flemish Baroque, Religious Scene, Esau and Jacob, Lentil

circa 1650

Flemish school, 17th century Orpheus and the animals Oil on canvas, 146,5 x 217 cm Provenance: South German private collection. On an impressive, room-filling format, this painting depicts "Orpheus and the Animals." The harp-playing Orpheus sits centrally in front of a tree whose trunk bifurcates above his head. This central tree frames with its crown the scenery towards the horizon and at the same time offers through branches the possibility for many birds to find space. The left half of the picture is characterized by a seascape, at the edge of which the ruins of a castle can be seen deep in the background. This seascape, framed by mountains on the horizon, is the only area where sky can be seen. On this side, waterfowl such as storks, swans and ducks can be seen. In the right half, the viewer looks into a deep European forest. On this right side, more land animals can be found, such as deer, rabbits and lions, among others. Orpheus wears opulent red and gold trimmed clothing, under his blue breastplate we see a white shirt. His feet are adorned by elaborate sandals. His head is surrounded by a radiant laurel wreath ("poeta laureatus"). The young man is clearly identifiable as the singer and poet of Greek mythology, Orpheus, by his harp, the laurel wreath and the animals surrounding him. Orpheus was one of the Argonauts who, under Jason, was searching for the Golden Fleece. He sang so beautifully that he even conquered the angry sea and enemies by the magic of his lyre. During the journey, Orpheus is said to have drowned out even the sirens with his singing. It is said that he was the greatest of all poets and charmed people, animals, stones and trees with his singing. In total, 51 birds and 37 different species are depicted in the painting. The animals are mostly depicted in great detail and, except for a few, can be identified. Mainly European species of animals are shown. Exceptions are the ostrich-like nandu peeking out from behind the deer, as well as the large parrot on the upper left, and the two lions. Similar is the case for the large animal directly behind Orpheus on the right. The shape of the head suggests an arctic fox from the polar regions, even though the body is much too large. The arctic fox was first described in 1555 by Olaus Magnus. However, it could also be a depiction of a brown or black bear. An unusual detail is the animal, which is relatively isolated in the right background and looks to the left. It is not clearly identifiable, but it shows certain similarities with the Australian kangaroo. This was first described by Vespucci in 1500 and further by Francisco Pelsaert in 1629. If it is indeed a kangaroo, this would be one of the earliest surviving pictorial representations. In this painting, Orpheus is accompanied by a small monkey playing a viola da gamba. This is an iconographic peculiarity. In general, this painting has some peculiarities compared to other paintings with "Orpheus and the animals". The central positioning of Orpheus is quite common, but he usually holds a lyre and is dressed in an antique style, but not as opulently. The choice of animals is also remarkable: European animals in particular are seen, hardly any exotic features, such as camels or elephants. The two lions in the right foreground are a quotation from Peter Paul Rubens and his depiction of "Daniel in the Lion's Den", which was realized in an engraving. The present painting can be classified as belonging to the Flemish School of the 17th century on the basis of its painterly and compositional conception. From the circle of Jan Brueghel the Younger are numerous representations of this Orpheus - theme, which take it as an opportunity to show as many exotic animals. There are also echoes of Spanish painters such as Juan de Arellano...

Hercules and Omphale Oil on panel, 52 x 41 cm According to legend, Hercules had to make atonement and became a slave to the Lydian queen Omphale. When she found out who her slave was, she married him. Falling for his mistress and made effeminate by the luxury of court life, the former hero allowed himself to become the laughing stock of the court. He dressed in women's clothes, spun wool and did other women's work, whereas Omphale wore his lion's skin and carried a wooden club. When the time of punishment was over, the hero realised his delusion and left Omphale. So far, the painting could not be clearly assigned to an artist. Nevertheless, it impresses with its fluid and convincing painting, whose colourfulness and conception are reminiscent of the Prague School around Bartholomäus Spranger. This work follows an engraving and an etching made by Michel Dorigny in 1643 after a design by Simon Vouet. It shows the same scene but the print differs in minor details from the present painting (see e.g. the head of the lion) and the treatment of the faces seems to be painted more detailed and refined. So far there is no painting...

Attributed to Peter Candid / Pieter de Witte (Bruges c. 1540 - 1628 Munich) Sacra Conversazione Oil on wood, 29 x 37 cm The painter, sculptor and architect Peter Candid, known in Italy as Pietro Candido, was born in Bruges between 1540 and 1548. In the 1560s he stayed in Florence, where he worked in the workshop of Giorgio Vasari, with whom he collaborated on a number of commissions for the House of Medici. After a brief stay in Volterra, he went to Munich in 1586. For the next 42 years, until his death, he remained court painter to Duke William V...

Circle of Jan van Huchtenburg Landscape Scene with a Soldiers Camp Oil on Canvas, 41 x 55 cm Soldier Camp Life Scene together with a wonderful golden Frame

After Rembrandt "The Prodigal Son in the Tavern" Old Master Style Painting Late 19th century - Early 20th century Oil on Canvas 36.75 x 44.5 unframed 40.5" x 48.5" framed

English Provincial School, early 19th Century Travellers at an inn Oil on canvas 17 x 21 in. (43.2 x 53.3 cm.)

After Simon Johannes van Douw (Antwerp c. 1630 - c. 1677) The stop of a traveler on horseback near a post station Oil painting on canvas 45 x 55 cm In frame cm. 55 x 65 In this pleasant painting, depicting a knight parked near a post station, the Flemish tradition is based on a strong Italianizing sensitivity, especially by observing the setting and its peculiar brightness. The mixture of genres and the particular style of execution make it easy to trace the authorship back to a Nordic author but active in Rome, or strongly influenced by the style in vogue in the Eternal city, between the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries: we are referring, in in particular, to a follower of the Antwerp Simon Johannes van Douw. The chromatic elegance and refinement with which he outlines the figures are typical aspects of his painting. The scene takes place outside a cottage, probably a post office for travelers, where a modest family divides the tasks by assisting the knights. We see a young boy who hands water to the horse before he sets off again, the father is preparing to feed him with straw and the mother who instead takes care of the little son. The Italian reminiscences, evident in our painting, have been absorbed by many Northern European authors such as Nicolaes Berchem, Philips Wouwerman or Johannes Lingelbach, all inspired by the leader Pieter van Laer...

Felice Boselli (Piacenza 1650 - Parma 1732) - Shepherd with flock and game. 155 x 112 cm without frame, 170 x 126 cm with frame. Ancient oil painting on canvas, in a wooden frame lacquered in faux marble. The painting has stylistic affinities with "Game with children playing with a dog" (Parma, Galleria Nazionale) and with the pair of paintings "Old man and girl...