Figures gathered in a street at night

One of the greatest collectors of Dutch drawings, Cornelis Ploos van Amstel (1726-1798) was also an artist in his own right and Director of the Amsterdamse Stadstekenakademie (City Drawing Academy). Although it has not been possible to identify the present drawing, his posthumous sale, beginning on 3 March 1800, contained many drawings by Jan Luyken, including 40 drawings by the artist in a portfolio.