Lot Essay
The present work pictorializes some of the Netherlandish traditions connected to childbirth. The wicker seat (bakermat), in which the dry nurse (baker) sits near the fireplace, is large enough to contain the whole figure. Although the object is no longer used, the word itself survives in Dutch and Flemish as the synonym for birthplace. (For a more detailed discussion of the bakermat, see A. Knopper, In de kraam: Weternswaardugheden over oud-nederlandse kraamgebruiken, 1975, pp. 14-15).
Welu (op. cit., p. 75) mentions two other works by Janssens of the same subject, one formerly attributed to Anthonie Palamedesz (Charles T. Yerkes, Woodmere Art Gallery, Philadelphia, no. 140) and another formerly attributed to Philip van Dijk (Mme. Poullier-Ketele, Brussels, sale, Lorey Freres, 23 March 1924, lot 8).
Welu (op. cit., p. 75) mentions two other works by Janssens of the same subject, one formerly attributed to Anthonie Palamedesz (Charles T. Yerkes, Woodmere Art Gallery, Philadelphia, no. 140) and another formerly attributed to Philip van Dijk (Mme. Poullier-Ketele, Brussels, sale, Lorey Freres, 23 March 1924, lot 8).