Houses by a river

This sheet may be compared to Jan van Goyen's early drawings in pen and brown ink, dating from the 1620s, H.U. Beck, Jan van Goyen 1596-1656, I, Amsterdam, 1972, nos.1-45a. These drawings are divided into groups according to the sketchbooks from which they originate, while there are some drawings of a different format. The present lot fits perfectly into the group of fifteen drawings which Beck (op.cit.) lists under nos. 21-31. The technique of hatching on the roofs and walls of the houses, as well as the handling of the foliage are very similar, and may also be compared to that in the newly discovered drawing sold in these Rooms, 10 November 1997, lot 58. The boat on the right may be compared to that in Beck no. 7. Some of the drawings in the group described have grey wash that may have been added later. The watercolour on the present lot obscures a direct comparison with the group, which Dr. Beck hesitates to accept as by Jan van Goyen.