David Teniers the Elder

Private collection, United Kingdom;
Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, 6 July 2000, lot 150;
Where acquired by the present owner.

The panel is cradled on the reverse and appears to be made up of five vertical boards. The paint surface is well preserved overall with good thick impasto. There are two patches of very minor lifting, one in the sky upper right, with a pinprick loss, another in the ground, lower right, again with a pinprick loss and one further minute loss in the sky above the right most cross. Some of the blues have oxidized slightly, for example in the drapery of the fainting Virgin, in the purple drapery of the figure to the right of the Virgin and in the drapery of the child in the foreground. Inspection under UV reveals retouching along the panel joins, small scattered retouches here and there on the figures, some in the form of inpainting to the craquelure. There is a larger area of retouching at the far right, running from the rock ledge to the lower edge. There is another area of retouching on the left arm of the figure at right, pulling the rope. The face and right arm of that figure both fluoresce possibly as a result of retouching or perhaps due to unevenness in the varnish. There are areas of minor retouching in the sky and a larger area of retouching in the upper right corner. Detail and coloration remain strong in the figures and the trees and any retouching has been sensitively applied and blends well. The painting is ready to hang in its present state. Offered in a carved black wood frame.
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.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

This large, impressive panel by David Teniers the Elder can be compared to the artist's signed and dated painting of The Reconciliation of Jacob and Esau sold Luzern, Rubner, 3 October 1938, lot 1706 (E. Duverger & H. Vlieghe, David Teniers der Altere, Utrect 1971, reproduced fig. 27), particularly in the handling of the landscape, clouds and certain figure types. The influence of the German artist Adam Elsheimer, under whom Teniers studied in Rome, is evident in the color palette, drapery, and rendering of the light in the sky.