The second sale of works from the Collection of Jacques Goudstikker will take place in London on 5th July. Chief among these is the extraordinary altarpiece by Jacob Cornelisz. van Oostsanen and workshop (fig. 1 ).

Only 27 known pictures can be attributed to van Oostsanen, a painter from the Northern Netherlands, active from circa 1507-1533. He was an influential figure in Amsterdam, where he ran a successful workshop. Van Oostsanen began his career as a print maker, specialising in woodcuts and his early style is steeped in the late gothic tradition of the Haarlem School.

The present altarpiece, whose central panel depicts The Last Supper flanked by the double wings depicting Saints and donors, was painted in circa 1525 for the Carthusian Cloister of Nieuwlicht in Utrecht. It marks a refinement of his style, reflecting the influence of artists such as Jan Gossart and Jan van Scorel, both of whom joined van Oostsanen's studio in 1512. Here, the essentially gothic composition is combined with more elongated figures, simplified landscapes and a looser, more fluid application of paint, to produce one of his mature masterpieces.

Other early 16th-century pictures from the collection include two panels by the German artist Hans Süss von Kulmbach (fig. 2 ), who was the foremost follower of Dürer in Nuremberg after 1509. The two paintings portray The Virgin Mary's half-sisters, Mary Cleophas and Mary Salome and their respective families.

The beautiful still-life by the rare Frankfurt-based artist Jeremias van Winghe (fig. 3 ) shows his technical mastery in depicting a range of objects from a silver tazza filled with sweetmeats, to a roemer with a gilt stand, an apple, walnuts and a silver plate with langoustines on a table. Van Winghe married the daughter of a jeweller in 1616 and took an active role in his father-in-law's business, which may explain his limited output.

There are a number of important Dutch landscapes from the Golden Age in the sale. Outstanding examples include A wooded landscape with a mountain stream and waterfall by Jacob Isaacksz. van Ruisdael (fig. 4 ) and two atmospheric seascapes by Jan Josefsz. van Goyen. Ships in a choppy sea in a thunderstorm (fig. 5 ) is particularly notable for the depiction of dramatic climatic conditions with lightning cutting through the dark brooding sky, and suppressed light from the low horizon catching the tops of the waves as they toss the small vessels in the storm.

The Dutch townscape is represented by one of the genre's greatest exponents, Gerrit Adriaensz. Berckheyde. The Plaats with the Buitenhof and the Gevangenpoort, The Hague (fig. 6 ) is one of the most accomplished of a number of views of the city that he painted in the 1680s. He shows a coach entering the Buitenhof (or outer courtyard) from the Plaats on the left, with elegant figures on horseback in the foreground. Berckheyde cleverly plays with light and shade in the picture, contrasting the dark foreground and buildings with the sunny sky. The composition is carefully constructed, using the vertical lines of the lime trees and the receding horizontals of the buildings, to create a realistic space punctuated with small groups of people and animals that give the scene its sense of spontaneity.