Galante Scene Vermeer d'Utrecht Paint Oil on canvas 18th Century Flemish Old Art

Circle of Peter Paul Rubens (Siegen 1577 - Antwerp 1640) The Judgement of King Solomon Oil on copper (41 x 49 cm. - with ebonised and gilded wooden frame 58 x 66 cm.) The proposed painting, executed in oil on copper, depicts the biblical episode known as the 'Judgement of King Solomon' and is taken from the Book of Kings, in the Old Testament (I Kings, 3, 16-28). The work is derived from the painting in the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen depicting the 'Judgement of Solomon', which was largely created by Rubens' workshop with some intervention by the master. The iconography of the painting was certainly made popular by the print made by the Dutch engraver Boetius Adams Bolswert (Bolsward, c. 1585 - Antwerp, 1633) now in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum. The extraordinary critical and illustrative success of the work is certain, of which several replicas and copies exist, preserved in museums and private collections: Delft, Rouen and Coutrai, Liechtenstein in Vaduz and in Seville Cathedral. The prototype for the original Copenhagen painting...

Johann Heinrich Roos (Otterberg 1631 - Frankfurt 1685) Landscape with the myth of Mercury and Batto (from Ovid's Metamorphoses) Oil painting on canvas 101 x 159 cm. With frame 115 x 174 cm. The work represents the mythological episode, taken from Ovid's Metamorphoses (Ovid, Metamorphoses, II, 676-707), and precisely when the god Mercury, taking advantage of a moment in which Apollo leaves his herd alone, steals some heifers and then hides them in a ravine. The only witness to the theft is the old Batto, a shepherd in charge of looking after the purebred horses of the rich Neleus, king of Pilo and who, in exchange for a heifer, guarantees the God not to be a spy, swearing to him that he will remain silent as a stone. . Immediately distrusting of his words, Mercury decides to test his honesty: he presents himself in front of him with another aspect, asking him if he had seen a herd pass by, and offering him in exchange for this information a bull and a heifer. Batto, who is immediately tempted by this new and more convenient offer, indicates without hesitation where the animals were hidden. As Ovid well illustrates in his poem 'the Metamorphoses', whoever betrays the trust or benevolence of a God is forced to a bitter fate, and so Batto is transformed by Mercury into a stone, remaining silent for eternity just as he had promised. The scene represents the moment when Mercury is offering Batto a heifer, which he indicates with his hand, in exchange for his loyalty. The divinity is perfectly recognizable due to his classical attributes, the winged helmet and shoes and above all the caduceus, the winged staff with two twisted snakes, which he will use to transform the shepherd into a stone. The figurative and exhibition peculiarities of this valuable painting...

Hans de Jode (The Hague, 1630 - Vienna, 1663) Fantasy winter landscape with bridge and tower About 1650 Oils on canvas (62 x 93, in frames 82 x 112) The work is accompanied by an expertise of Dr. Fred G...

Hans de Jode (The Hague, 1630 - Vienna, 1663) Fantasy winter landscape with lake and city on the banks About 1650 Oils on canvas (62 x 93, in frames 82 x 112) The work is accompanied by an expertise of Dr. Fred G...

Lucas Cranach the Elder and Studio 1472-1553 German Moses and the Pillar of Cloud Oil on panel Moses and the Pillar of Cloud is a bold and evocative composition that showcases the signature intense color and intricate detail of Lucas Cranach the Elder’s celebrated oeuvre. The remarkable 16th-century oil on panel by Lucas Cranach and his studio captures the narrative moment when Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt and encounters God manifested through a large pillar of cloud. Moses stands at the precipice of a bridge and turns back to soldiers helping to lead the group of Israelites who huddle closely together. Cranach depicts Moses with his traditional iconography, rendering the rays of light on his head which came to be interpreted as "horns" in the translation of the Bible. Using his traditional walking staff, Moses gestures toward the pillar, seemingly acknowledging that God will protect the group as they cross the bridge to the other side, leaving exile and entering a promised land. In a nod to Cranach’s Germanic locale, he renders the figures and setting in a manner that feels decisively more akin to European aesthetics than those of the Red Sea. Soldiers wear elaborate, gothic suits of armor that recall the livery of Northern European guardsmen. The terrain appears more like a European forest giving way to a sweeping valley than the arid landscape the Israelites trekked through on their journey across the Red Sea. Though still clearly recounting a story from the Old Testament, Cranach renders the cast of characters and setting in an earthly, familiar manner. This aesthetic shift speaks to Cranach’s own changing beliefs as he found himself at the center of the Protestant Reformation. After first gaining recognition in 1505 as the official painter of Frederick the Wise, Cranach established a thriving painting and print studio in Wittenberg, Germany. Cranach was renowned for his court portraits and genre paintings and was also well known for his association with the famous protestant reformer Martin Luther, then under the protection of Frederick the Wise. As Wittenberg became a bastion of new religious thought, Cranach soon befriended Luther and played an active role in creating the printed materials that proliferated throughout the Reformation...

Joseph van Bredael 1688-1739 Flemish The Adoration of the Magi Oil on copper Painted on copper and exhibiting an exquisite luminosity, this exceptional painting...

This lovely British 18th century landscape oil painting is attributed to circle of Hubert Robert or Robert of the Ruins as he was better known. The work depicts an extensive landscap...

Abraham Begeyn, Dutch Golden Age painter and Prussian court painter painted this wonderful 17th century Old Master oil painting. Painted circa 1690 and signed lower right, the subject matter is sheep and a goat under a tree in the foreground, amongst beautiful flora and fauna. Through the trees one can see some classical ruins to the left and to the right some buildings with a shepherd and his flock in front of the buildings and mountains beyond. Above is a beautiful sky tinged with pink, suggestive of dawn. There is tremendous detail in the flora and fauna and also the sheep's woolly coat. Begeyn particularly favoured painting this sort of scene with the elements of landscape, ruins or buildings and animals and was a master at it and highly prized in the Netherlands. This is an excellent example of Begeyn's work and is good condition given its age as a 17th century Old Master oil painting. Signed lower right. Provenance: Collection of Mr P. Vienna (label on the reverse) Sale, Sotheby's, London, 18 October 1995, lot 70. Condition. Oil on canvas, 24 inches by 21 inches unframed and in good condition. Frame. Housed in a gilt swept frame, 31 inches by 28 inches framed and in good condition. Abraham Begeyn (c. 1637 Leiden - 11 June 1697 Berlin), was a Dutch Golden Age painter. Begeyn was born in Leiden. Though perhaps known mostly for his Italianate landscapes and cattle in the manner of Nicolaes Pietersz Berchem, Begyn was a highly skilled painter active in many genres, who travelled widely. According to the RKD, Begeyn's earliest known work is from 1653, though he was first accepted into the Guild of St. Luke in Leiden in 1655. He stopped paying dues in 1667, because he set off for a trip to Italy. He is registered in Rome and Naples from 1659–1660. In the rampjaar or disaster year, of 1672, he is registered in Amsterdam, and after that he lived in London, where he painted at Ham House, Surrey, together with Willem van de Velde the Younger (1633–1707) and Dirck van Bergen...