Ambrosius Bosschaert the Younger

Private collection, Germany;

Private collection, Switzerland;

Anonymous sale, Zurich, Koller, 21 September 2007, lot 3029, for 721,500 Swiss francs;

Where acquired by the present owner.

This magnificent still life is a beautiful signed example by one of the pioneers of the genre in the Netherlands, Ambrosius Bosschaert the Younger. Set against a monochrome background, a beautifully rendered wicker basket is depicted piled high with a multicoloured variety of fruits. It is placed atop a weathered stone ledge laden with fruit and exotic shells rendered with meticulous naturalism and botanical detail. The composition is further enlivened by a sand lizard, a wasp and a snail.

Born in Middleburg in 1609, Ambrosius Bosschaert the Younger began his career in the workshop of his father, Ambrosius Bosschaert the Elder (1573–1621). His early training was further influenced by his uncle, Balthasar van der Ast (1593 or 1594–1657), who joined the family workshop in 1609 upon the death of his own father. In comparison to Bosschaert the Elder's foundational yet sometimes repetitive floral arrangements, Bosschaert the Younger's decidedly more Baroque compositions captured the growing fascination for exotic rarities and objects imported to Holland from the New World. Included amongst the colourful array of shells are a Conus marmoreus, a Chicoreus torrefactus and a Conus episcopus, all originating from the Indo-Pacific Ocean.

A comparable work by the artist, with a similar wicker basket, an identical monogram and dated 1631, was sold in 1992 for £319,000.¹

¹ Oil on panel; 41.7 x 54.3 cm.; https://rkd.nl/images/25639