Nicolaes Maes

The Hermitage, St. Petersburg (according to the exhibition catalogue of 1934);
Dr. van Hengel, The Netherlands;
Possibly with Dowdeswell, London (with a fifth person to the left);
With D. Katz, Dieren, The Netherlands, by 1934;
Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, 9 December 1959, lot 121, to G.F. Thomson;
Private Noble collection, Belgium;
From which sold, London, Sotheby's, 17 December 1998, lot 157;
Anonymous sale, Amsterdam, Sotheby's, 9 May 2006, lot 57, where bought by the present owner.

 

The Hague, Koninklijke Kunstzaal Kleykamp, Tentoonstelling van schilderijen door Oud-Hollandse en Vlaamsche Meesters uit de collectie Katz te Dieren, 1934, Supplement, p. 4, no. 11.

Probably C. Hofstede de Groot, A Catalogue Raisonné..., vol. VI, London 1916, p. 596, no. 553 (with measurements of 34 ½ by 42 in. and with a fifth person on the left);
W. Sumowski, Gemälde der Rembrandt-Schüler, Landau/Pfalz 1983, vol. III, p. 2036, under no. 1443.

The painting is slightly less red and has more contrast than the catalogue illustration suggests. There is a recent and effective relining. The painting is covered in a recent varnish, which has become a bit dull to the upper left. The paint surface is in quite good condition, but slightly thin to the centre and centre left background. There is some retouching to the left side due to the reduction of the canvas. Inspection under ultra violet light reveals minor retouches to the background, with the figures fully preserved. Offered in a 18th century carved and gilt wood frame, in very good condition, with 'N. Maes' inscribed.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

This is a mature portrait group by Maes, which Prof. Dr. Werner Sumowski compares to a Portrait of four children dated 1674 in the Dordrechts Museum, Dordrecht (inv. no. DM 972/467).¹ It corresponds to a work by Maes mentioned by Hofstede de Groot, but the differing measurements may be accounted for by the likely reduction of the canvas by about 34 cm. at the left side sometime between 1910 and 1959, thus removing a boy (the eldest brother according to Hofstede de Groot) dressed as a sportsman in yellow and red, in the process of shooting an arrow.²

The figure of the little boy representing Ganymede shows close affinities with Maes' painting of Gerbrand De Vicq (1674-1712), as Ganymede, sold, London, Christie's, 10 July 1992, lot 148, in which the poses of both the child and the eagle correspond closely to those in the present picture. Sumowski suggests that the portrayal of a child as Ganymede was intended to indicate that he had died during infancy, as was the case for the other small child in this picture, shown with angels' wings in the upper right corner.³ Nicolaes Maes painted several portraits of children as Ganymede, Apollo and Diana, both single figure and in family groups.⁴ These can all be dated to the 1670s and early 1680s, although stylistically the early 1670s seems a more plausible dating for the present work.

1. See Sumowski under Literature, p. 2036, no. 1443, reproduced. 
2. See Hofstede de Groot under Literature.
3. See Sumowski under Literature, p. 2033, under no. 1423.
4.  op.cit., cat. nos. 1423-4, 1442-3, 1446, reproduced pp. 2149-50, 2168-9 and 2172.