Encompassing centuries of change in Europe between 1300 and 1800, from booms of prosperity to bloody revolutions, Old Masters describes a wide range of artists. The informal term was derived from the title of an artist who trained in a guild long enough to become a master, such as Leonardo da Vinci, who studied in a Florence painters’ guild. However, Old Masters paintings, prints and other art is now used to refer to work made by any artist with a high level of skill in painting, drawing, sculpture or printmaking who worked during this era.
The 15th century’s expansive trade and commerce spread culture across borders. A vibrant period of art emerged, bolstered by studies of anatomy and nature that influenced a new visual realism. From Raphael and Michelangelo in the Renaissance to Rembrandt van Rijn and Johannes Vermeer in the Dutch Golden Age, artists expressed emotion, naturalism, color and light in new ways. El Greco and Paolo Veronese were leaders in the dramatic style of Mannerism, while Caravaggio and Peter Paul Rubens demonstrated the movement and meticulous detail of Baroque art.
Historically, most attention was concentrated on male artists, but recent research and exhibitions have elevated the impactful work of women such as Rachel Ruysch and Artemisia Gentileschi. In late-18th-century France, female artists like Adélaïde Labille-Guiard and Élisabeth Vigée Le Brun were prominent names. Nevertheless, access to the academies and guilds was highly restricted for women, and even those able to establish practices were expected to adhere to portraits and still lifes rather than the grand history paintings being created by men.
Find a collection of Old Masters prints, paintings, drawings and watercolors and other art on 1stDibs.
Abraham and the Sacrifice of His Son Isaac by Adriaen Van Stalbemt, C. 1605-1610
Located in Stockholm, SE
Artist: Adriaen van Stalbemt (Stalbempt) 1580-1662 Title: Abraham and the Sacrifice of His Son Isaac “Das Opfer des Abraham” According to the Old...
Copper
$19,671
An Italianate landscape with a messenger & his horse on a wooded path, a lake
Located in Stoke, Hampshire
John Tobias Young (1786-1828) An Italianate landscape with a messenger & his horse on a wooded path, a lake & ancient ruins beyond Signed & dated “J. Young 1821” lower centre Oil on ...
Oil
$1,822
GIRL WITH KITTEN- In the Manner of F.Ballavoine's - Italy Oil on canvas paint
Located in Napoli, IT
Girl with kitten - Giulio Di Sotto Italia 2008 - Oil on canvas cm. 80x70 This painting is Giulio Di Sotto’s personal reinterpretation of the 19th century French painter Jules Frédéric Ballavoine...
Canvas, Oil
St. Jerome in the Desert
Located in Chicago, IL
Engraving by Joannes and Lucas van Doetecum (Deventer active by 1551 - circa 1569 Haarlem) in the manner of Peter Bruegel the Elder
Engraving
A poodle chasing a butterfly
By Ben Marshall
Located in Stoke, Hampshire
Ben Marshall (1768-1835) A poodle chasing a butterfly Oil on canvas Canvas size 10 x 12 in Framed size 15 x 17 in Provenance The Collection of the late David Fuller, former Director...
Oil
$10,029Sale Price|20% Off
Announcing Angel Fetti Paint 17th Century Oil on canvas Old master Italy Art
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
The Announcing Angel Lucrina Fetti, née Giustina Fetti (Rome, c. 1590 – Mantua, 1673) attributed to Oil on canvas 75 x 62 cm. - Antique gilded wooden frame 87 x 74 cm. The wo...
Oil
$5,309Sale Price|20% Off
Lamentation Christ Van Dyck Paint 17/18th Century Oil on canvas Old master Art
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Lamentation of Christ Follower of Anthony van Dyck (Antwerp 1599 - London 1641) Late 17th-early 18th century Oil on canvas (64 x 51 cm. - Framed 77 x 65 cm.) This is a very...
Oil
$2,723Sale Price|20% Off
San Joaquín, Santa Ana y la Virgen niña - óleo sobre cobre.
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
Escuela española; siglo XVIII. San Joaquín, Santa Ana y la Virgen Niña. Óleo sobre cobre anónimo y buena calidad pictórica. Medidas de la obra: 69 x 87 cm. Medidas del marco: 92 ...
Oil
$21,829Sale Price|20% Off
Portrait Noblewoman Kneller 17/18th Century Paint Oil on canvas Old master Art
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Godfrey Kneller (Lübeck 1646 – London 1723) Portrait of an English noblewoman, presumably Mary Capel, Countess of Essex (1679–1726) Oil on canvas 128 x 104 cm. In frame 146 x...
Oil
Portrait of a Gentleman, James Douglas, Lord Aberdour, Fine Period Carved Frame
Located in London, GB
This exceptionally handsome and imposing portrait is a particularly accomplished example of British grand-manner portraiture of the early Georgian period. Preserved in excellent over...
Canvas, Oil
$2,395Sale Price|20% Off
Large Antique Oil Still Life with Hunting Dogs & Game Classic Sporting Scene
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Italian artist, 19th century Still Life with Hunting Dogs indistinctly signed oil on canvas, unframed Canvas: 14.25 x 24 inches Provenance: private collection, UK Condition: very goo...
Oil
$6,607Sale Price|20% Off
Rebecca At The Well Pietro Da Cortona Paint 17/18th Century Oil on canvas Italy
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Rebecca at the Well Follower of Pietro da Cortona (Cortona 1596 - Rome 1669) Oil on canvas (50 x 66 cm. - Framed 63 x 84 cm.) The painting depicts the biblical episode from the...
Oil
19th Century English, Norfolk School landscape with figure on a path with trees
Located in Woodbury, CT
Norfolk School English, circa 1830–1840 Extensive Landscape with Figure on a Path Oil on wooden panel Unsigned A finely composed early 19th-century English landscape, painted circa...
Oil, Wood Panel
$998Sale Price|20% Off
Escuela Francesa (XIX) - Les cascatelles de Tivoli (Tras Jean Honoré Fragonard)
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
La obra no va firmada, es de autor anónimo Se presenta enmarcada la obra El estado de la obra se puede ver, es aceptable, solo presenta alguna leve falta (apreciable en las fotogra...
Oil
17th century English Birds on a pond and in flight, Ducks, Swans, Kingfisher
By Francis Barlow
Located in Woodbury, CT
Studio of Francis Barlow, English, late 17th century Birds on a Pond with Waterfowl and Birds in Flight Oil on canvas Un-signed Presented in an antique English carved wood frame A f...
Canvas, Oil
Still Life of Flowers in vase on Ledge - Dutch 17thC Old Master art oil painting
By Simon Pietersz Verelst 1
Located in Hagley, England
This stunning 17th century Dutch Old Master Golden Age floral oil painting is by noted Dutch artist Simon Pietersz Verelst. The full attribution...
Oil
$10,853Sale Price|51% Off
Portrait of a Gentleman, traditionally identified as Edward Addison, Esq., 1780s
Located in Edinburgh, Scotland
George Romney (1734-1802) Portrait of a Gentleman, traditionally identified as Edward Addison, Esq., c.1780s Oil on canvas In a period carved and gilded swept frame 76.3 x 63.2 cm.; ...
Oil
$11,681Sale Price|20% Off
Stormy Sea Ships Landscape Van Plattenberg Paint 17/18th Century Oil on canvas
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Matthieu Van Plattenberg (Antwerp 1608 - Paris 1660) workshop of Stormy sea with ships Oil on canvas 90 x 120 cm - In antique frame 103 x 133 cm This evocative coastal view...
Oil
One of the oldest depiction of Venezia by an Antwerp painter of the 17th century
Located in PARIS, FR
15 3/8 “x 22 1/8” (39.2 x 56.3 cm) – Framed : 20 5/8’’ x 28” (52.5 x 71 cm) Provenance: Sotheby's London, December 7, 1994, lot 165 Guilloché frame in blackened wood - 17th century ...
Copper
$1,089Sale Price|20% Off
Escuela hispano-colonial (siglo xix) - Óleo sobre tela - La sagrada familia
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
Sin firmar, es de autor anónimo Se presenta enmarcada la obra con un marco del siglo xviii (el marco presenta algunas leves faltas) Medidas obra: 104 cm. de altura x 80 cm. de anch...
Oil
$14,109Sale Price|20% Off
Portrait of a Gentleman with his Dog - Possibly Abraham Tucker. Oil on Canvas
By Enoch Seeman
Located in St. Albans, GB
Enoch Seeman - 1894 - 1744 Provenance: Christies King Street Canvas Size: 50 x 40" (127 x 102cm) Outside Frame Size: 58 x 48" (147 x 122cm) An excellent example of Seeman's work. ...
Oil
Portrait of Young Girl feeding Chickens - British 19th century art oil painting
By William Owen
Located in Hagley, England
This lovely 19th century Old Master portrait oil painting is by noted British artist William Owen. Painted circa 1810 the composition is a young girl kneeling to feed her chickens in...
Oil
$9,321Sale Price|20% Off
Still-Life Flowers Paint 18th Century Flemish school Oil on canvas Old master
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
18th-century Flemish painter Still life with flowers and fruit, a cake, a precious goblet and cheese oil on canvas 73 x 98 cm. – with frame 98 x 129 cm. Provenance: Cambi, Ge...
Oil
$7,940Sale Price|20% Off
Architectural Capriccio Paint Garola 17/18th Century Oil on canvas Old master
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Pier Francesco Garola (Turin 1638 - Rome 1716) Architectural capriccio with coastal view Oil on canvas 74 x 99 cm With frame 87 x 112 cm Reference bibliography: G. Sestieri,...
Oil
$10,501Sale Price|20% Off
Landscape Mary Magdalene Bril Paint 17th Century Oil on canvas Old master
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Fantastic Landscape with Mary Magdalene Paul Bril (Antwerp, 1554 – Rome, 1626) Workshop of First half of the 17th century Oil on canvas (76 x 96 cm - In antique frame 95 x 11...
Oil
18th Century Italian Portrait Credited to Maria Giovanna Battista Clementi
Located in Roma, IT
18th Century Italian Portrait Credited to Maria Giovanna Battista Clementi The painting probably depicts a young nobleman of Savoy court ...
Oil, Canvas
COUNTRY LANDSCAPE - Italian School - Italian Oil on Canvas Painting
Located in Napoli, IT
Country Landscape - Emilio Pergola Italia 2005 - Oil on canvas cm.80x120. This oil on canvas painting depicts a pastoral scene. The painting assumes as its subject a form of landsca...
Canvas, Oil
$5,559
ARCHITETTURE ANIMATE - Olio su tela alla maniera di Giovanni Paolo Pannini
Located in Napoli, IT
Le scenografie di questo genere pittorico, chiamate "rovine", erano solitamente animate da diversi personaggi e storie; un tema tipico tra questi è il capriccio con rovine e oratore ...
Canvas, Oil
$1,633Sale Price|20% Off
Escuela española (XVIII) - Óleo sobre tela - San Juan Bautista
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
Escuela Española siglo XVIII Se trata de un óleo sobre tela representando a San Juan Bautista Se presenta sin enmarcar la obra Medidas: 104 x 83 cm. El estado se puede ver, pres...
Oil
Portrait of Lady in Silver Dress - Dutch Old Master art portrait oil painting
By Willem Wissing
Located in Hagley, England
This lovely Dutch Old Master portrait oil painting is attributed to circle of Willem Wissing. Wissing settled in England and emerged as Peter Lely's most important pupil after his de...
Oil
GENGHIS KHAN - Italian School - Oil on Canvas Italian Figurative Painting
Located in Napoli, IT
GENGIS KAN - Maximilian Ciccone - Italia - Oil on canvas cm.210x120. In this majestic oil on canvas painting the Artist Ciccone portray the Mongol leader and ruler Genghis Khan...
Canvas, Oil
$10,636Sale Price|25% Off
Old Master Painting Called Christ at the Column
Located in Stockholm, SE
Follower of Gerard Seghers (1591-1651) Christ at the Column oil on wood panel c. 1700s unframed 19.5 × 14 cm Provenance: Originally in the collection of Dr. Axel Munthe (1857–1949), the renowned Swedish physician and author celebrated for his philanthropic work and for founding Villa San Michele...
Oil, Wood Panel
The Maitland Family Portrait
By Mason Chamberlin
Located in Stoke, Hampshire
Mason Chamberlin R.A. (London 1727-1787) Ebenezer Maitland Senior (1752–1834) and his wife Mary Winter (c. 1752–1835) with their son Ebenezer Fuller Maitland (1780–1858) in an interi...
Oil
Royal Hospital att Greenwich to the River /// "Vitruvius Britannicus" Engraving
Located in Saint Augustine, FL
Artist: Colen Campbell (Scottish, 1676-1729) Title: "Royal Hospital att Greenwich to the River" (Vol. 1, Plates 86, 87) Portfolio: Vitruvius Britannicus; or The British Architect, Co...
Laid Paper, Engraving, Intaglio, Etching
BATHOS / Tail PIece
Located in Santa Monica, CA
WILLIAM HOGRATH (1767- 1764) THE BATHOS / Tail Piece 1764 (Paulson 1989: 216 I/I Paulson 1965/70: 216 I/I) Engraving Plate 12 7/8 x 13 3/8, sheet 17 ¾ x 18 ¾ Designed & Engrav’d by Wm Hogarth at left and Published according to Act of Parliam’t March 3, 1764 at right. Good condition on thick laid paper Small bit of tape on the left & right sheet edges small stan lower sheet edge all on recto. This Hogarth’s last print is fascinating as it is prophacy about death. Various institutions have interesting commentaries - to wit: Chicago Art Institute: Hogarth created The Bathos toward the end of his life. It is considered one of the bleakest artworks of the 18th century because it depicts the Apocalypse without an afterlife. The Angel of Death even collapses in exhaustion after having destroyed the world. In his hand is an execution decree and around him lies a mass of broken objects. Princeton: Hogarth’s last print, The Bathos,….. is filled with all manner of images denoting the end of life as we know it. Entry no. 216 in Ronald Paulson’s catalogue raisonne Hogarth’s Graphic Works, 3rd revised edition says “This print is the culmination of such pessimistic images . . . . [taking] his general composition, the configuration of objects, and some of the particular items, from Dürer’s engraving, Melancholia; but he also recalls Salvator Rosa’s Democritus in Meditation (which derives from Dürer’s print) with a scroll at the bottom of the etching: ‘Democritus the mocker of all things, confounded by the ending of All Things’ (Antal, p.168).” Newfields (Indianapolis Museum of Art): Hogarth intended this engraving to serve as the tailpiece to bound volumes of his collected engravings and, appropriately, it proved to be his last engraving. Father Time has died and his last will and testament has been witnessed by the three Fates. He is surrounded by a landscape of death, decay, and ruin. Hogarth aimed this print at dealers in “dark” Old Masters paintings who promoted the idea that ruins evoked sublime feelings in viewers—a sentiment, Hogarth wrote, that was reducing the world to ruin. British Caricature...
Woodcut
$5,105
COUNTRY SCENE- Italian School - Figurative Italian Oil on Canvas Painting
Located in Napoli, IT
Country scene - Oil on canvas cm.80x120, Giovanni Santaniello, Italy 2002 Gold gilded wooden frame available on request The painting by Giovanni Santaniello depicts a scene of return...
Canvas, Oil
Portrait of Lady Elizabeth Shirley, by a Marble Table on a Porch, Inscribed
Located in London, GB
Few portraits of this period combine such commanding scale, unusually secure sitter identification and such evocative links with one of England’s great landed dynasties. Painted when...
Canvas, Oil
$6,262Sale Price|20% Off
Christ Supported by an Angel in the Garden of Gethsemane, On Slate
Located in Stockholm, SE
This evocative Veronese School painting captures the moment in the Garden of Gethsemane when Christ, overwhelmed with sorrow, prays to God before his arrest and crucifixion. Supporte...
Slate
19th century oil painting Highland Pony and Retriever, Robert cleminson
Located in York, GB
19th century oil painting Highland Pony and Retriever, Robert cleminson. A fine painting depicting a Highland Pony and Retriever, with the days bag. An oil on canvas, signed lowe...
Oil
$1,306Sale Price|20% Off
Large Ornate Classical Flowers in Vase Still Life Oil Painting
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Classical Still Life of Flowers by the Miguel Canals Studio, Spain oil on canvas, unframed canvas: 23.5 x 18 inches Provenance: Private collection Condition: very good condition Fo...
Oil
Landscape With Pan and Syrinx, Flemish School From the 1600s, Oil on Copper
Located in Stockholm, SE
Flemish School, 1600s Landscape With Pan and Syrinx painted around the 1600s oil on copper 19 x 23.5 cm frame 29 x 34 cm Hand-made oak frame by Swedish frame maker Christer Björkma...
Copper
18th-Century Italian Capriccio Landscape Attributed to Maria Luigia Raggi
Located in Roma, IT
Italian landscape capriccio from the second half of the 18th century, attributed to the Genoese painter Maria Luigia Raggi (1742–1813). The composition unfolds as an imaginary landsc...
Canvas, Oil
Portrait of a Lady, Agatha Halyburton later Countess of Morton Fine Carved Frame
Located in London, GB
This magnificent and exceptionally decorative portrait of a young woman is one of those early Georgian images in which likeness, sumptuous colour and symbolic meaning combine to unus...
Canvas, Oil
$2,170Sale Price|20% Off
Fine Large 17th/ 18th Century English Portrait of Mr. Gilbert Charity Founder
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Portrait of Mr. Gilbert (believed to be the founder of 'Gilberts Charity, Bridgwater, Somerset) English School artist, late 17th/ early 18th century oil...
Oil, Canvas
18th century French Garden or Féte a Bride and musicians playing music
Located in Woodbury, CT
This enchanting 18th-century French fête galante captures the elegance and joy of aristocratic leisure, set amidst a lush garden adorned with flowers. A scene of refined celebration,...
Canvas, Oil
Singer by Candlelight (Dutch School Old Master Genre Scene)
Located in Wilton Manors, FL
Beautiful Dutch School painting dating from 17th century. Oil on wood panel measuring 10 3/8 x 14 7/16 inches. Unsigned. No inpainting or conservation. Depicted is a scene with a beautiful young woman singing...
Oil, Wood Panel
$1,079Sale Price|20% Off
18th Century French Oil Painting Tavern Scene Interior Merry Making Figures
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Merry Makers in the Tavern French School, 18th century oil on canvas canvas: 8 x 11 inches provenance: private collection, France condition: good and sound condition
Oil, Canvas
Portrait of King Charles I, in Armour, after Sir Anthony van Dyck, Carved framed
Located in London, GB
This handsome and unusually intimate image of King Charles I brings one of Sir Anthony van Dyck’s most commanding royal inventions into a scale ideally suited to private display. Aga...
Canvas, Oil, Wood Panel
S. Paolo Fuori Le Mura (Vedute della Basilica di S. Paolo fuor della mura)
Located in Fairlawn, OH
S. Paolo Fuori Le Mura (Vedute della Basilica di S. Paolo fuor della mura) Etching, 1748 From: Vedute di Roma, Plate 8 An early Roman printing, published by Bouchard e Gravier Watermark: Fleur de Lys in a double circle Signed in the plate Condition: Small margins as are common with Bouchard published impressions. Centerfold (as usual) Rich impression with good contrasts Plate/Image size: 15 7/8 x 24 1/8 inches Sheet size: 17 3/8 x 24 3/4 inches Reference: Focillon 723 Wilton-Ely 138 Hind 6 ii/VI, Bouchard e Gravier printing, before the price and numbers in later states This image is Piranesi’s second interior scene from the Vedute di Roma. The first interior is a less complex composition of the Interior of St. Peters which lacks the challenging perspective that the artist masters in this image. The Papal Basilica of St. Paul Outside the Walls...
Etching
$2,707Sale Price|20% Off
Fine 18th Century British Portrait of an Aristocratic Lady, Large oil painting
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
Circle of Thomas Hudson (1701-1779) British. 18th Century Bust Portrait of a Lady, Oil on Canvas, Inscribed on a label verso, canvas: 30" x 25" (76.2 x 63.5cm). frame: 30 x 25 in...
Canvas, Oil
Period Italian Signed Landscape
By Ugo Gheduzzi
Located in Roma, IT
1910s Italian Signed Landscape Beautiful oil painting on cardboard by the great Bolognese artist Ugo Gheduzzi (Crespellano BO 5 March 1853 - Turin 1925). The light of rare intensity...
Oil
$4,015Sale Price|20% Off
Huge Victorian English Old Master Oil Painting Madonna & Christ Child after Dyck
Located in Cirencester, Gloucestershire
The Madonna and Christ Child English School, 19th century after the earlier painting by Sir Anthony van Dyck, unsigned oil on canvas, framed in fine elaborate gilt frame. Framed: 49...
Oil, Canvas
$3,744
VIEW OF CAPRI -Posillipo School - Italain Landscape Oil on Canvas Painting
By Francesco D'Angiolo
Located in Napoli, IT
View of Capri - Francesco D'Angiolo Italia 2004 - Oil on canvas cm. 60x80 Gold leaf gilded wooden frame available on request.
Canvas, Oil
$3,180Sale Price|20% Off
Ancient Roman Architecture: Framed Original 18th C. Etching by G. Piranesi
Located in Alamo, CA
"A sua Eccellenza il Signor Henry Hope Cav. Scozzese Amatore delle Belle Arti from "Vasi, Candelabri, Cippi, Sarcofagi, Tripodi, Lucerne, Ed Ornamenti Antichi", (Vases, candelabra, grave stones, sarcophagi, tripods, lamps, and ancient ornaments) is an etching by Giovanni Battista Piranesi, published in 1778. It depicts stone caryatids...
Etching
$2,695Sale Price|20% Off
Animated harbor scene
Located in Genève, GE
Work on canvas Black wooden frame 71 x 91 x 3 cm
Oil
$4,148Sale Price|20% Off
Still-Life Flowers 17th century Flemish School Paint Oil on table Old master
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
17th-century Flemish school Still life with flowers Oil on panel 33 x 25 cm In frame 50 x 42 cm The painting depicts a wonderful still life of flowers, where numerous colour...
Oil
Old Master Style Inn Interior with three men drinking around a table
Located in Woodbury, CT
This 18th-century painting, attributed to Christian Wilhelm Ernst Dietrich (1712–1774), depicts a rustic inn interior, a subject frequently explored by Dutch and German genre painter...
Wood, Oil
Early 18th Century Old Master Christ Agonizing on the Cross
Located in Sant Celoni, ES
"Early 18th Century Old Master Christ Agonizing on the Cross." Oil on panel. Artwork: 18.2 × 13.4 cm (7.2 × 5.3 in.) ; This finely executed Early 1...
Oil, Panel
$7,585Sale Price|20% Off
Conversion Saint Paul Antonio Tempesta Paint 17th Century Oil on canvas Italy
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Antonio Tempesta (Florence 1555 - Rome 1630) Circle The Conversion of Saint Paul on the Road to Damascus Oil on canvas 112 x 102 cm Framed 125 x 114 cm The scene depicts the e...
Oil
$9,362Sale Price|20% Off
Saint Sebastian Petrazzi Paint 17th Century Oil on canvas Old master Siena Art
Located in Riva del Garda, IT
Saint Sebastian Attributed to Astolfo Petrazzi (Siena, 1583–1665) Oil on canvas 88 x 64 cm. Framed 98 x 76 cm. The painting in question depicts an intense portrait of Sain...
Oil