Melchior d'Hondecoeter (Utrecht 1636-1695 Amsterdam)
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Melchior d'Hondecoeter (Utrecht 1636-1695 Amsterdam)

A Concert of Birds

Details
Melchior d'Hondecoeter (Utrecht 1636-1695 Amsterdam)
A Concert of Birds
signed 'M.Hondecoeter' (on the music sheet)
oil on canvas
44½ x 49 in. (113 x 124 cm.)
Special notice
No VAT will be charged on the hammer price, but VAT at 17.5% will be added to the buyer's premium which is invoiced on a VAT inclusive basis.

Lot Essay

We are grateful to Mr. Fred Meijer of the RKD for confirming the attribution after inspection of the original. He believes the signature to be authentic but does not rule out the possibility of some studio assistance.

The composition relates closely to two known autograph variants, both of which are similarly signed on the manuscript: the first one, a slightly larger picture sold, Sotheby's, New York, 1 June 1990, lot 113A ($165,000), differs in the inclusion of a number of birds, most prominently a dove flying in from the right. The other picture, which is closer to the present version, was last recorded in a collection in Leipzig, 1956 (RKD files). The most obvious difference in this case is the depiction of a magpie instead of the cockerell in the right foreground.

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