17th Century Art

Oil on canvas, 140 x 215 cm (without frame) and 160 x 235 cm (with a contemporary frame), depicting the Drunkenness of Noah by the painter Giovanni Andrea De Ferrari (Genoa 1598-1669...

This is a hand-colored copper plate engraving entitled "Pulegium Cervinum, Pseudo Pulegium Struthium, Pulegium Regium", depicting flowering Peppermint, Weld and Pennyroyal plants respectively from Basilius Besler's landmark work, Hortus Eystettensis (Garden at Eichstatt), first published in 1613 in Eichstatt, Germany near Nuremberg and later in 1640 and 1713. This beautiful colorful engraving is printed on thin laid chain-linked paper. There are subtle creases in the right upper corner, very common with Besler's relating to the drying of the paper during its production. The right margin is thinner than the others. The print is otherwise in excellent condition with striking hand-coloring. Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was an apothecary and botanist. He was curator of the Willibaldsburg Castle garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop...

Felice Ficherelli Italian 1603-1660 Cupid Oil on canvas, unsigned Image size: 32 x 28 1/4 inches (81.3 x 71.8 cm) Original gilt frame Depicting a relaxed Cupido, the gentle beauty ...

Oil on Canvas. The large Baroque scene is completely filled with various figures, intertwined and overlapping one another, albeit on different levels of depth. Seated at the center o...

Oil on oak panel, inscribed top left ‘AETATIS SUAE 32’ Image size: 27 x 35 inches (68.5 x 89 cm) Contemporary style handmade frame This is a portrait of a medical figure from the ea...

Dog is a wonderful black and white etching on thick laid paper, realized by the Italian master Antonio Tempesta (1555-1630). Not signed. In excellent conditions. Including a crea...

Anthony Palamedesz (Delft 1601 - Amsterdam 1673) - signed and dated Guards with bugler Oil on panel (42 x 54 cm. - Framed 55 x 67 cm.) Signature: lower left “f Palamedes 163.....

Remembering the magic of everyday life moments in the art of David Teniers: The art of David Teniers the Younger (1610–1690) coincided with the heyday of the Flemish Baroque and captured a great variety of motifs of his time. In this painting of a seemingly simple peasant scene lies keys to understanding both the imaginative mind of Teniers as well as why this time period produced some of the most iconic works in all of art history.  As indicated by the name, Teniers was more or less born into his profession. As the son of David Teniers the elder, himself a painter who studied under Rubens, the younger David received training in art from a very young age and had no less than three brothers who also became painters. Because of his father’s frequent financial failures that even at times saw him imprisoned, David the younger helped to rescue the family from ruin through painting copies of old masters. Essentially, the young Teniers was confronted with painting as both a passion and creative expression as well as a necessity during difficult times, an experience that would shape much of his capacity and sensitivity in his coming life. Despite the hardships, the talent and determination of Teniers was recognized and quickly expanded his possibilities. He had already spent time in France and possibly also England when he was hired by his father’s former teacher Rubens to help with a prestigious commission with mythological paintings, now considered lost, for Philip IV the king Spain. In 1644–54 Teniers was appointed dean of the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke, manifesting his esteemed position within the artistic community. A few years afterwards he took an important step when relocating to Brussels, where Teniers yet again found new career opportunities that would prove to be very successful. As the keeper of the collections of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm, a role similar to what we now refer to as an art advisor, Teniers purchased hundreds of important artworks that manifested the prominent status of the Archduke’s collection while at the same time providing an unusual access to inspiration and knowledge for Teniers himself. Since he kept on painting during the same time, his creative scope must have seemed almost bewildering in the great variety of images and stories that he surrounded himself with.  Regardless of how glamorous and culturally stimulating the career of Teniers was, he was as open to the charm and existential importance of everyday life as he was to works of great masters and luxurious collectibles. In his impressive repertoire of genres with everything from exquisite royal portraits, interiors, landscapes and history paintings he always added something new and inventive, highlighting the possibilities of art and importance of an experimental and intuitive mind. It is difficult to single out one aspect or genre to summarize his legacy, since it lies much more in the broad virtuosity across many motifs, although he is particularly remembered for farm scenes and meticulously depicted interiors where other paintings and artworks are captured with an astonishing precision. However, the fact that he is still today one of the most known and celebrated names of the Dutch Golden Age is a proof to the magic of his work, which continues to spark dialogue and wonder in the contemporary viewer of his works. The farm boy in the field in this painting, which likely dates to the mature part of his career, is a wonderful entry into the mind of Teniers. In the tightly cropped motif, we see him standing right in the middle of the busy harvest when men, women and everyone capable were sent out in the field to collect the crop that formed the very core of their diet and survival. In the background we see a fresh blue sky interspersed with skillfully painted clouds, some trees reaching their autumnal colours and in the far distance the glimpse of a small church and village. The presence of a church in a landscape, so typical of Dutch art, served both a symbolic and visual function as a representation of faith while at the same time defining scale and distance. In the field, the work is in full action with the farmers spread out in various positions, all in the midst of hard and sweaty labour. While they are portrayed as having nothing else than the work on their mind, our farm boy seems to have his attention directed elsewhere. Standing there with his white, half open shirt, flowy curls and strong, sturdy body; his gaze is directed away, out of the picture and the scythes in his hands. He looks almost smirking, expressed with tremendous subtlety in the slight smile of his lips and big eyes, being just in the middle of losing focus on the work. What is it that steals his attention? What has he seen, or realized, or felt – to break him free of the arduous task of harvesting, if but for a moment? Here starts the wondering and the questions that are the hallmark of a great piece of art. Instead of explicitly locking in the motif in overly clear symbolism Teniers has chosen an open ended, subtle yet striking moment for us to consider. While it of course can be related to numerous other farm scene depictions of this time, and clever usages of gazes and real-life scenes to underscore various moral or symbolic meanings, the painting can be much more of a contemplation than an explanation or illustration. The ordinary nature and understated yet emotionally textured composition of the motif gives greater space for our own reactions and thoughts. Has he seen a pretty farm girl just passing by? Is he fed up with the farm life, joyously dreaming away for a minute, imagining another future? Or is he simply in need of distraction, looking away and ready for anything that can steal his attention? One quality that never seem to have escaped Teniers was that of curiosity. During all of his career he constantly investigated, expanded and experimented with not only the style and technique of painting, but with the vision of art itself. Being credited with more or less introducing farm motifs for a broader audience not only tells us of his ability to understand the demand for different motifs, but the sensitivity to transform seemingly ordinary parts of life into deep aesthetic experiences, far beyond their expected reach. The farm boy in this painting is, of course, exactly that. But with the help of one smirk the entire picture is charged with a different energy, awakening many contrasts and relationships between the calm landscape, the hard work and his own breach of effectivity, holding sharp scythes while thinking or seeing something else. It is no wonder Teniers chose to work with farm scenes as a way of investigating these intricate and delicate plays on expectations and surprises, clarity and ambivalence. It invites us to an appreciation of human everyday life that connects us with the people of 17th century...

Signed and dated lower left. Includes a beautiful later wooden frame cm. 137x8x182. Very Good conditions. Prov. Christie's London, February 15th 1974, n. 19. This artwork is shippe...

Antonio Tibaldi (Rome, c. 1633 - c. 1684) Still Life with Precious Objects, Brocade Fabrics and a Plate of Sweets c. 1650/1660 Oil on canvas, 96 x 130 cm In frame 115 x 150 c...

Oil on Canvas. Venetian school of the 17th century. The figures, portrayed in the half-length foreground, have Mary placed in the center holding the infant Jesus; behind them on the ...

Artist: Jacques Callot (French, 1592-1635) Title: Pasquariello Truonno, Meo Squaquara Year: 1622 Medium: Etching Paper: Laid paper Size of paper: 2.35 x 3.95 inches Condition: Very g...

Polus Antarcticus is a top rare ancient map realized in 1650 by Johannes Janssonius (1588-1664). Good conditions. From Atlantis majoris quinta pars, Orbem maritimum [Novus Atlas, v...

Mary Beale Portrait of Nell Gwyn 1633 - 1699 Oil on canvas, unsigned Image size: 14 ¾ x 16 ½ inches Gilt frame Beale’s portrait depicts a woman seated, head tilted to one side, eyes...

Pair of angels with floral garland and cartouche with family motto 'Pulchriora latent' Workshop of Carlo Maratta (Camerano, 1625 - Rome, 1713) Dated on parchment, right: 1697 oil on the table (94 x 84cm./ in frame 105 x 95 cm.) This magnificent composition, depicting two little fluttering cupids intent on holding up a garland of flowers, can be traced back, both for the stylistic characteristics and for the compositional taste, to a master active in the fervid seventeenth-century Baroque Rome. One of the two cupids is about to grab the bow of the garland with his head facing downwards, while with the other hand he shows a parchment which bears, in addition to the date of execution, the Latin expression "Pulchriora latent" ("The the most beautiful things...

Oil on Canvas. Venetian school of the 17th century. The story of Tamar, told in the book of Genesis, is a tale of deception, justice and divine providence. Tamar, widowed by Judah's...

Circle of Teniers, Peasants in a Landscape passing by a river and an Inn.

This ambitious composition illustrates the ancient episode of The Ring of Polycrates, drawn from Herodotus. In the story, the king of Samos, blessed with continuous success, is advis...

Attributed to Gerrit Adriaensz Berckheyde (1638-1698) Courtyard scene with elegant ladies and horsemen gathered beside a large fountain Oil on panel Painting size - 17 3/8 x 23 5/8 i...

The internal organs is an ancient original etching Table no. 36 of the popular "De Humani Corporis Fabrica" by Andrea Vesalio, in the 1642 edition by Nicolaus Fontanus (Fontayn), Am...

A fine European portrait of a priest, oil on canvas, probably dating to the 17th or 18th century, unsigned, with original stretcher, minor surface losses and damage, craquelure, edge...

17th-century Roman Maestro Title: Still life with parrot, fruit, flowers and metal jug on a cloth Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: without frame 64 × 118 cm - with frame 88 x 140 x ...

This is a framed hand-colored 17th century map of Northern Scotland by Gerard Mercator entitled "Scotiae pars Septentrionalis", published in Amsterdam in 1636. It is a highly detailed map of the northern part of Scotland, with the northwest Highlands and the cities Inverness and Aberdeen, as well as the Orkney Islands and the Hebrides. There is a decorative title cartouche in the upper left corner. The map is presented in an antiqued brown wood...

The Prodigal Son Among Courtesans Attributed to Hieronymus Francken II (Antwerp 1578-1623) Early 17th century Antwerp school Oil on oak panel, Dimensions: H. 52.5 cm (20.67 in), W. 74 cm (29.14 in) Flemish-style moulded wood frame Frame: h. 78 cm (h. 30.70 in.), w. 100 cm (39.37 in.) This artwork is sold with a certificate of authenticity guaranteeing its origin, date of execution, and attribution to the artist. At first glance, this festive and joyful painting depicts a group of elegantly dressed people dancing to the sound of an orchestra in a richly decorated interior with a wide opening onto a rural exterior. However, the real theme is cleverly concealed by the painter and is only discernible through the artifice of a small scene in the background where we see a half-naked man, in the company of the pigs next to a makeshift shelter. In fact, beyond the pleasant and apparently superficial character of the painting, it is a subject taken from the parable of the prodigal son in the Gospel. The illustrated episode is the prodigal son among courtesans. Even if the viewer's attention is drawn to the central couple (prodigal son embracing a pretty courtesan) doing the dance steps, the artist takes care in a narrative approach of all the groups and ancillary scenes in order to create a rich and varied composition. Thus the musicians seated on a raised platform are depicted with great skill, their faces animated, their clothes abundantly varied. The theme of music, which has always been associated with that of sensuality and physical love, helps to exacerbate licentious pleasures. The merry company dances "Spanish pavane", a slow court dance from the sixteenth century, danced close to the ground by couples arranged in a procession, which was probably introduced to the south of the Netherlands around 1600 during the governance of Albrecht VII and the daughter of the King of Spain Isabella Clara Eugenia in Brussels. The interior of the house is also carefully elaborated, the embossed leather dyes on the walls, the middle sideboard (typical in Francken interiors), where the rich gold and silver crockery is placed in front of the painting "Andromeda chained to the rock and Perseus arriving to rescue her". The inclusion of a contemporary and probably extant pictorial work is also one of the characteristics of the Francken family, among them Frans Francken the Younger...

The Holy Family, 1634 Etching after Parmigianino (Parma 1503 - 1540 Casal Maggiore) 305 x 230 mm.; 12 x 9 inches References: Nagler Monogrammisten II...

17th Century Still-life Italian painter Title: Still life Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: without frame 58 x 136 cm - with frame 71.5 x 150 cm Antique shaped and gilded wooden box...

Artist: Adriaen Van Ostade (Dutch, 1610-1685) Title: Smoker Leaning on the Back of a Chair Year: 1672 Medium: Etching Paper: Laid paper Image size: 4.1 x 3.55 inches Signature: Si...

Italian School, late 17th century Salome and the Head of Saint John the Baptist Oil on canvas H. 109 cm; W. 83 cm Unsigned The theme of Salome receiving the head of Saint John the B...

Andrea Scacciati (Florence 1642-1710) Composition of flowers within embossed vase (1 of 3) oil on canvas 130 x 90 cm In antique frame 145 x 105 cm. Work with expertise by Prof. Emi...

Attributed to Daniel Vertangen (1601–1683) – "Satyrs and Nymphs in a Landscape" Artist: Attributed to Daniel Vertangen (1601–1683) Title: "Satyrs and Nymphs in a Landscape" Medium:...

Portrait of Sir John Wentworth, 1st Baronet, and Mary, Lady Wentworth née Lowther c.1695–1705 Attributed to Michael Dahl (c.1659–1743) and Attributed to Thomas Murray (1663–1735) T...

Pair of Views of Villa Medici Vascello are an old master artwork realized by Artist of 17th Century. Mixed colored oil painting on canvas. The View of Villa Medici Vascello toward...

The Human Skeleton is a original etching realized as plate no. 20 of Andrea Vesalio's "De Humani Corporis Fabrica". The "De Humani Corporis Fabrica is...

Giovanni Domenico Valentino (Rome 1630 - Imola 1708) Signed with the monogram G.D.V in the center right, on a majolica vase The pharmacist in his laboratory Oil on canvas, 73 x 66 cm In gilded and lacquered frame cm. 86 x 80 This work, depicting a fascinating laboratory interior with a pharmacist busy in the preparation of medicines, is part of the typical production of the Roman Gian Domenico Valentini, also known as Giovanni Domenico Valentino (Rome 1630 - Imola 1708). The canvas, which is signed with the monogram G.D.V in the center right on a majolica vase, should have been painted in Rome, where the painter worked from 1662 until his death, except in 1680-1681, when he worked in Imola and Ravenna. The use of models by Flemish artists who populated the Eternal City appears essential in the development of Valentini's painting. The use of Nordic models in the development of this type of pictorial genre, with interior scenes and elements of still life, had gained great fortune with the Roman client, leading to an almost serial production, but always of great evocative charm. . Giovanni Domenico Valentini distinguished himself in the artistic panorama of the Italian seventeenth century precisely for the peculiarity of his favorite subjects: they are mainly kitchen interiors or as in our case of a laboratory, where countless objects are piled up arranged in picturesque disorder: here the tools of a pharmacy, in copper and terracotta, vases or pourers in metal and clay, jars and albarelli in majolica, bottles, flasks, glasses, cauldrons, basins and other containers in copper and terracotta, as well as an open oven. The large background wall is occupied by an angular hanging shelf for jars and apothecary jars all arranged in a row, in the foreground the still life featured various pharmaceutical tools such as apothecary bottles, mortar bowls, jars and jars with handles as well as pots and copper vessels. Particularly striking from a chromatic point of view, and a typical piece of furniture of the painter, is the painting above the door frame, which depicts a landscape. The interiors of the Valentini, of which our painting is a valuable example, which display large quantities of objects or furnishings, are arranged with a wisely studied organization: the whole represented is arranged according to the dictates of a pre-ordered exhibition and appears so to speak 'on display', exhibited and organized according to the very personal intent of a painter who aims to ennoble everyday life and make it the emblem of his art. The interior of our pharmacy is very similar to a monogrammed version kept in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Palais Fesch, in Ajaccio (inv. 852-1-461) depicting a 'Young man visiting a pharmacy', in which the same elements, albeit varied: the half-open wardrobe...

The Human Body is an original etching from the famous "De Humani Corporis Fabrica" by Andrea Vesalio. The "De Humani Corporis Fabrica" is commonly consi...

This large original hand-colored copperplate engraved map of southern Greece and the Pelopponese Peninsula entitled "La Moree Et Les Isles De Zante, Cefalonie, Ste. Marie, Cerigo & C...

Tiberio Titi (Florence, Italy, 1573 – 1638) Title: Portrait of a Gentleman Medium: Oil on panel Dimensions: Without frame 122 x 91 cm – with frame 162 x 133 x 10 cm Not signed Publ...

Oil on Canvas. Flemish school of the XVII-XVIII century. The main scene takes place in a vast Nordic landscape, within a forest teeming with twisted trees, and on the right, a city o...

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...

Oil painting on canvas. In the beautiful composition you can see, resting on an inlaid wooden sideboard, a basket full of cherries, some of which are scattered on the top, and a plat...

Madonna and Child with Angels Attributed to Louis de Caullery (1565 -1622) for figures & Abraham Govaerts (1589 - 1626) for landscape Not signed 17th century Antwerp school, circ...

San Francesco Saverio (Saint Francis Xavier), one of the most influential Christian missionaries in history. He was born into a noble Basque family in the Kingdom of Navarre, now par...

Adriaen van Diest (1655-1704) – "Italianizing Landscape" Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions (Framed): 102 x 122 cm Dimensions (Flat): 74 x 106 cm Signature: Lower right corner Fram...

References: Bartsch, Dutuit and Hollstein 2

Piedmontese painter (18th century) - Landscape with ruins and figures. 97 x 138 cm (without frame) - 114 x 156 cm (with frame). Oil on canvas, unframed (not signed). The painting ...

Andrea Vaccaro (Naples, Italy, 1604 – 1670) Title: Penitent Magdalene Year: 1630-1635 ca. Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: without frame 75 x 62 cm – with frame 87.5 x 74.7 x 5.5 cm...

Giovanni Battista Beinaschi (Fossano c. 1634 - Naples 1688) Portrait of the philosopher Heraclitus (absorbed in reading) Oil on canvas (82 x 64 cm - Framed 95 x 75 cm.) The p...

Spanish School (17th Century) A soldier arriving at a village Oil on canvas Unsigned 29 x 43.1/4 in. (74 x 110 cm.) Oil on canvas, not relined. Surface dirt and varnish discolourati...

A finely detailed round portrait of the 5th Earl of Dorset, Richard Sackville (1622–1677), an English peer, politician, and Fellow of the Royal Society. Before inheriting the earldom...

The work takes up the fresco created by Pietro da Cortona on a wall of the Sala della Stufa in the Pitti Palace, part of the cycle of the Four Ages of 'Man, inspired by Ovid's Metamo...

Portrait of a Lady, in a Black Dress with Red Satin Sleeves and Pearls English School c.1660–1680 Circle of Sir Peter Lely (1618-1680) This striking portrait is a compelling exampl...

Julius Porcellis (Rotterdam 1610 – 1645 Leiden) attributable Seascape with ships Oil on wood panel (oak) 52 x 84 cm In gilded wood frame 77 x 108 cm The painting on display d...

The Circulatory System is a original etching realized as plate no. 124 of Andrea Vesalio's "De Humani Corporis Fabrica". The "De Humani Corporis Fabrica is commonly considered a m...

This is a hand-colored copper plate engraving entitled "Matricaria Flore Simplici, Matricaria Flore Pleno, depicting flowering Feverfew and Double-flowered Feverfew plants, from Basilius Besler's landmark work, Hortus Eystettensis (Garden at Eichstatt), first published in 1613 in Eichstatt, Germany near Nuremberg and later in 1640 and 1713. The feverfew plant is also known as featherfew, featherfoil, or bachelor’s buttons...

17th-century French school Ceres as an allegory of Summer Oil on canvas 53 x 90 cm. - Framed 67 x 103 cm. The painting depicts the goddess Ceres, reclining on the grass outdo...

This evocative three-quarter length portrait, executed in the Venetian School during the 17th century, depicts an imagined figure of an elite Ottoman woman, rendered in rich oils on ...

Judith Holding Holofernes' Head is an old master artwork realized by an unknown Artist of 17th century. Oil on canvas. The painting depicts Judith Holding the head of Holofernes.

Antique Map - Orbis Terrarum is an antique map realized in 1650 by Johannes Janssonius (1588-1664). The Map is Hand-colored etching, with coeval watercoloring. Good conditions with...

Travellers in a Country Landscape circle of Jacques d'Arthois (Flemish 1613-1686) oil on canvas, framed frame: 13.5 x 18.5 inches canvas: 11 x 16 inches provenance: private collectio...

Pietro Della Vecchia (Venice, Italy, 1603 - Vicenza, Italy, 1678) Title: The Alchemists Medium: Oil on canvas Dimensions: without frame 73 x 97 cm – with frame 90.4 x 114.3 x 6 cm N...