CORNELIS SAFTLEVEN (GORINCHEM 1607-1681 ROTTERDAM)
CORNELIS SAFTLEVEN (GORINCHEM 1607-1681 ROTTERDAM)
CORNELIS SAFTLEVEN (GORINCHEM 1607-1681 ROTTERDAM)
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On occasion, Christie's has a direct financial int… Read more
CORNELIS SAFTLEVEN (GORINCHEM 1607-1681 ROTTERDAM)

The Temptation of Saint Anthony

Details
CORNELIS SAFTLEVEN (GORINCHEM 1607-1681 ROTTERDAM)
The Temptation of Saint Anthony
oil on panel
16 1/4 x 20 1/2 in. (41.5 x 52 cm.)
Provenance
Private collection, France.
with Johnny Van Haeften, Ltd., London, where acquired by the present owner.
Special notice
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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).

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