- 111
PIETER MOLIJN | A Peasant Family approaching a tower on a wooded hill
Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 GBP
bidding is closed
Description
- Pieter Molijn
- A Peasant Family approaching a tower on a wooded hill
- Black chalk and grey wash, within black chalk framing lines and original margins;signed and dated, upper right: PMolyn. (PM in monogram) / .1654.
- 152 by 201 mm
Provenance
Sale, Amsterdam, F. Muller (Heseltine, Richter and other collections), 27 May 1913, lot 148 ('beau et frais dessin'), reproduced pl.21;
C.B. Collection, Dresden;
with C.G. Boerner, Leipzig, 1932;
sale, Leipzig, C.G. Boerner, 19 June 1937, lot 363;
sale, Leipzig, C.G. Boerner, 28 April 1939, lot 399,
purchased at this sale by Wilhelm Friedrich Mertens
C.B. Collection, Dresden;
with C.G. Boerner, Leipzig, 1932;
sale, Leipzig, C.G. Boerner, 19 June 1937, lot 363;
sale, Leipzig, C.G. Boerner, 28 April 1939, lot 399,
purchased at this sale by Wilhelm Friedrich Mertens
Literature
H.-U. Beck, Pieter Molijn, Katalog der Handzeichnungen, Doornspijk 1998, p. 138, no. 264, reproduced
Condition
Remains of former hinges at top edge, verso. Some very slight abrasion at extreme edges, but overall condition very good and fresh.
"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 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."
Catalogue Note
In contrast to the expansive breadth of the other Molijn drawing from the Mertens Collection (lot 107), this drawing embodies all the dense working in black chalk and rich pictorial textures that are so characteristic of the artist's style. Molijn's great achievement, in drawings such as this, was to harnesses brilliantly the considerable level of detail in the execution to create an image full of movement, light and energy. Just like the previous lot, by Van Goyen, this fine drawing retains some of its original margins. A great many Dutch landscape drawings of this time were made, within framing lines and broad margins, as finished works for sale, but these margins have almost always been trimmed off at some point in the intervening centuries.