Attributed to Adam de Coster

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com, an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. This work has not been recently restored. The canvas is lined, but the cracking is raised and distracting. The paint layer is in good condition, showing very few retouches and no signs of abrasion. There is a line of retouching in the hand in the lower left corner. There are some retouches in the figure smoking a pipe in the center of the far right. The condition is otherwise good throughout the figure group and in the still life objects on the table. Changing the lining would make a huge difference.
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."

The card player seated at center, his dark haired opponent in the foreground, and the smoking onlooker at the far right of the present composition all can be closely compared to figures in Lucas Vorsterman’s engraving after a lost work by Adam de Coster, which depicted tric-trac players and a musician around a table (fig. 1).