Cornelis de Heem

Brought to the U.S. from The Netherlands by the grandparents of the current owners in the 1930s.

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 and is noticeably dirty. There is one small hole in the upper center of the background that has not repaired, but one sees a very healthy picture with no visible damages throughout the remainder of the picture. When the picture is cleaned, the details within the still life will be remarkably colorful and in wonderful condition. At present, there is one light cleaning test in the peeled orange in the lower left and in one of the blackberries in the center. The condition is certainly excellent.
"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."

We are grateful to Fred G. Meijer of the RKD, The Hague who, based on firsthand inspection, has confirmed this to be a typical late work.  He has suggested that it may be a collaboration with the artist’s son, David de Heem (1663-1714) whose style was much indebted to that of his father’s.