Roelandt Savery
A lion hunting two deer
Estimate:
40,000 - 60,000 USD
Property from the Estate of Paul Kasmin
Roelandt Savery
Kortrijk 1576 - 1639 Utrecht
A lion hunting two deer
signed lower center: ROELANT/SAVERY and inscribed with an old inventory number lower right: R.F. 156.
oil on panel, circular
panel diameter: 24 3/4 in.; 63 cm.
framed: 29 3/4 by 30 1/4 in.; 75.6 by 76.8 cm.
This painting is in quite good state, with a very lively paint layer, with lots of detail throughout. The distant landscape is beautiful, as are the animals and the grasses and flowers in the foreground. The breath of the stag at left is even suggested with puffs of white paint, and the block letters of the signature at lower left/center as well as the inventory number of the Fideikommiss at lower right are all still strong. This round panel is uncradled, planar and seems to be healthy. Under uv: there is very little, a few touches here and there. Along the panel joins, about 1/3 from the top and from there bottom, there is restoration along these original joins, as is common. This picture is impressive and recommendable.
The lot is sold in the condition it is in at the time of sale. The condition report is provided to assist you with assessing the condition of the lot and is for guidance only. Any reference to condition in the condition report for the lot does not amount to a full description of condition. The images of the lot form part of the condition report for the lot. Certain images of the lot provided online may not accurately reflect the actual condition of the lot. In particular, the online images may represent colors and shades which are different to the lot's actual color and shades. The condition report for the lot may make reference to particular imperfections of the lot but you should note that the lot may have other faults not expressly referred to in the condition report for the lot or shown in the online images of the lot. The condition report may not refer to all faults, restoration, alteration or adaptation. The condition report is a statement of opinion only. For that reason, the condition report is not an alternative to taking your own professional advice regarding the condition of the lot. NOTWITHSTANDING THIS ONLINE CONDITION REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE/BUSINESS APPLICABLE TO THE RESPECTIVE SALE.
Anonymous sale, New York, Sotheby's, 29 January 2015, lot 36;
There acquired by Paul Kasmin.
H. Ritschl, Katalog der Erlaucht Gräflich Harrachschen Gemälde-Galerie in Wien, Vienna 1926, p. 43, cat. no. 391;
K.J. Müllenmeister, Roelant Savery, Die Gemälde mit Kritischem Oeuvrekatalog, Freren 1988, p. 258, cat.no.131, reproduced plate 22 (as circa 1620, perhaps with the assistance of Hans Savery II).
This painting is a late work by Savery, dated by Kurt J. Müllenmeister to circa 1620 (see Literature). By that date, Savery had returned to the Netherlands from Prague, where he had been in the service of Emperor Rudolph II from around 1603-1613. While there, the artist made numerous detailed studies of animals and birds in the menageries and hunting grounds of Rudolph and continued to use these as reference for later paintings. Rudolph had sent Savery on an expedition to the Tyrol in circa 1606-07 where he made drawings of mountains and waterfalls that also served as inspiration in his landscapes.
In Utrecht, where he settled after 1619, Savery found a steady demand for his landscapes among a large and prosperous class of buyers who were fascinated by his fantastical scenes and wild animals. This painting, depicting a lion chasing two deer through a dramatic mountainous ravine with a cascade in the background, would have been highly exotic compared to the more realistic landscapes being produced by Savery’s Dutch contemporaries.