JAN TEN COMPE (AMSTERDAM 1713 - 1761) & JACOBUS BUYS (AMSTERDAM 1724 - 1801) | A view of Delft from the South

Theodorus van Duysel, Amsterdam,
his sale, Amsterdam, Philippus van der Schley, 11 October 1784, Portfolio D, no. 305 (as Jan ten Compe, Jacobus Buys and Jacob van de Velde);
Edmond Fatio (1871-1959), Geneva,
his sale, Geneva, Rauch, 3 June 1959, lot 60 (as Jan ten Compe, 'Vue d'une ville Hollandaise');
sale, Amsterdam, Sotheby's, 2 November 2004, lot 128 (as Dutch School, 18th Century, but with a saleroom notice giving the correct attribution),
where acquired by the present owners

Florence, La Strozzina, I Disegni Scenografici della Raccolta Fatio, 1958, no. 111

Hinge mounted to a modern mount. There are two small tears to the lower left and lower right corners. The sheet has very fractionally discolored , however the watercolor media retains much of its original vibrant color and the image remains strong. Sold unframed.
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 intriguing collaborative work between Jan ten Compe and Jacobus Buys, depicting the view made famous by Vermeer's painting of the scene, which dates from 1660-61, is one of a small number of drawings signed in this way with the names of both artists.  How they actually collaborated is not, however, entirely clear, as the technique seems very much that of Buys, and there is no clear sign of two different hands at work in the drawing.  The signature on the verso also seems to be in Buys's hand, and one is led to wonder if perhaps he simply made the drawing on the basis of another work, a sketch from life by Ten Compe.  The two artists knew each other well - Buys painted a portrait of Ten Compe - and they both worked extensively for the Amsterdam tobacco merchant, Frans van de Velde, the former owner of Buys's Astronomers, lot 118 in the present sale.  Intriguingly, when it was sold in 1784, the present watercolour was listed as being by not only Ten Compe and Buys, but also Jacob van de Velde (the son of the artists' patron). As Dr. J.W. Niemeijer kindly informed us at the time of the 2004 sale, at least four other examples of such a collaboration are known, depicting the Nieuwe Tolbrug, Rijswijk, the house of Groenereld, near Ouderkerk, the Haarlemmerpoort of Amsterdam, and the Saint Laurence Church, Rotterdam.¹ 

The Schiedam and Rotterdam Gates, with the Tower of Nieuwe Kerk to the centre right, are seen from across a harbor appearing much as they did one hundred years before. Only the demolition of the projecting twin towers of the Rotterdam Gate, to the right, differs from the scene which confronted Vermeer.

^1. Respectively: The Hague, Gemeentearchief; Jonkman Collection, sale, Amsterdam, 1929, lot 674; formerly Leonhardt collection, Amsterdam, online sale, London, Christie's, 6 December 2018, lot 64; Vienna, Albertina, inv. 10703