Lot Essay
Probably a design for a glass roundel for a series of the Seven Acts of Mercy. Five drawings, all attributed to Swart van Groningen, evidently from the same series are in the Collection De Grez, Musées Royaux des Beaux-Arts, Brussels (inv. nos. 3558-61) and in the Albertina, Vienna (O. Benesch, Die Zeichnungen der Niederländischen Schulen des XV. und XVI. Jahrhunderts, Vienna, 1928, no. 92, pl. 27). The Seven Acts of Mercy provided a popular subject for stained glass in town halls, hospitals and other public buildings. Although the drawings were traditionally attributed to Jan Swart himself they are now regarded as works by an artist in his circle, influenced by Swart's late drawings