A hawking party at the foot of an ornamental staircase, with a mountainous landscape beyond

Frederik de Moucheron's paintings show the influence of the second generation of Dutch Italianate artists, particulary Jan Both and Jan Asselijn, the latter with whom he trained with in Amsterdam before settling in France for a few years. The second group of Dutch Italianates were active in Rome and the Netherlands in the 1630s and 1650s. Their work is characterised by the introduction of contemporary buildings and the depiction of low-life (bambocciate) scenes bathed in warm light. We are grateful to Mr. Bart Cornelis for confirming that the elegant figures in this picture are by Adriaen van de Velde, who frequently collaborated with Moucheron. He compares the execution of the figures with Van de Velde's A Hawking Party of 1666 (London, Royal Collection).