Hans Jordaens I

With Galerie Claude Vittet in 1998, Paris, from whom acquired by the present owner.

The catalouge illustration is much too red in tone. The support consists of three horizontal oak planks bevelled on all but the bottom edge. The panel is uncradeled and has developed a very faint but convex bow. The painting has recently been cleaned and restored and is in very good overall condition with only slight signs of wear in some of the paler tones. Inspection under ultra-violet light reveals only limited local repairs, chiefly along the panel joins and the tops of the tents on both sides, but otherwise this is confined to a few minor local retouchings. The varnish remains glossy and even, and the painting should require no further attention. This lot is sold with a modern embonised wood frame in the Dutch style in very good condition.
"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."

In 333 B.C.E. Darius received a crushing defeat at the hands of Alexander the Great and, wounded, fled. His family, including his mother, Sisygambis, his wife Stateira, and two children were captured by Alexander. He is shown here outside his tent on the battlefield offering them clemency.

Though Flemish by birth Hans Jordaens spent the best part of his adult life in Delft. He is recorded as a master of the Antwerp painters' guild in 1581 but at some point between 1590, when his son Simon was born, and 1597 he moved his family across the border and joined the Lutheran community in Delft. The intimacy of his religious, mythological and historical subjects had a wide appeal there and this is attested to by the large number of works attributed to him in 17th-century Delft inventories. Though he must have been prolific as a painter, very few works have survived, and only a handful of them are signed, even fewer dated.

A related version on canvas and of larger dimensions (96 by 130 cm.), which makes use of the same setting but which differs in the majority of figures that people it was sold, New York, Christie's, 17 October 2006, lot 211.