Circle of Abraham Bloemaert (1564-1651)

The Virgin and Child

Details

Circle of Abraham Bloemaert (1564-1651)
The Virgin and Child
black lead, pen and brown ink, brown wash heightened with white, brown ink framing lines, watermark crowned arms above star
196 x 142 mm.

Provenance

V. Röver (L. 2984a/c), his no. '4/11' (verso); as such in his inventory of 1731, acquired for Nlg. 2. With H. de Leth, acquired from Röver's widow in 1761.
Possibly anon. sale, Amsterdam, 24 March 1761, B.19.
Anon. sale, Amsterdam, 9 March 1767, lot 135 ('een zittende Maria met het kindje op haar arm, met de Pen en Oostind. Inkt gewassen', with lots 133-4, Nlg. 6 to Gildemeester).

Lot Essay

Professor Jaap Bolten has pointed out that the composition is probably based on the etching by Frederick Bloemaert, published in 1650/56 as plate 95 in Het Tekenboek, M. Roethlisberger, Abraham Bloemaert and his sons, Doornspijk, 1993, I, p. 405, T95, II, figs. T95-95a. The drawing could be by Frederick or another artist in the circle of Abraham Bloemaert. Dr. H.-U. Beck kindly supplied the early provenance, which would seem to indicate that it was regarded at an early stage as an authentic drawing by Abraham Bloemaert.

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