Lot Essay
Cornelis Saftleven’s most original contributions to Dutch painting were his representations of Hell and supernatural figures, of which this treatment of the Temptation of Saint Anthony is a related subject. Wolfgang Schulz identified five autograph paintings of this subject, not including the present example (see W. Schulz, Cornelis Saftleven, 1607-1681: Leben und Werke, Berlin and New York, 1978, pp. 184-185, 195, nos. 508-511, 533). The earliest known owner of a painting of this subject by Saftleven was the Flemish artist Sir Peter Paul Rubens, who occasionally collaborated with the Dutch artist (for Rubens’ ownership of a painting of this subject, see J.M. Muller, Rubens: The Artist as Collector, Princeton, 1989, p. 142, no. 293).
Here, the hermit saint is shown kneeling at left, a crucifix in his right hand. Behind him are pigs and in front an open book and skull. Various fantastic monsters are visible at center and right. A devil chases a naked woman in the right middle ground. Behind them is a long-necked, dragon-like beast, on which rides a monkey, a common symbol of lust and greed. In the deep background, various hellish monsters are seen before a fire.
Another version of this composition, attributed to Cornelis Saftleven, is today in the Bowes Museum at Barnard Castle, Durham (inv. no. B.M.197).
Here, the hermit saint is shown kneeling at left, a crucifix in his right hand. Behind him are pigs and in front an open book and skull. Various fantastic monsters are visible at center and right. A devil chases a naked woman in the right middle ground. Behind them is a long-necked, dragon-like beast, on which rides a monkey, a common symbol of lust and greed. In the deep background, various hellish monsters are seen before a fire.
Another version of this composition, attributed to Cornelis Saftleven, is today in the Bowes Museum at Barnard Castle, Durham (inv. no. B.M.197).