Jan Jansz. Treck, possibly with the involvement of Jan Jansz. den Uyl

Willem Frederik Jan Laan (1891-1966), Château Singraven, Denekamp;

His sale, Geneva, Galerie Moos, 9 June 1934, lot 27 (as Pieter Claesz);

With Walter Paech, Amsterdam, before 1940;

With Nordest Gallery, Boston, 1980;

Anonymous sale, New York, Sotheby's, 18 May 2006, lot 112 (as Treck);

Anonymous sale, Munich, Hampel, 9 December 2011, lot 283 (as Treck);

With P. de Boer, Amsterdam, 2012;

Private collection, Europe;

Anonymous sale, Zurich, Koller, 1 April 2022, lot 3055 (as Treck);

Where acquired.

N. Vroom, A Modest Message, as Intimated by the Painters of the 'Monochrome Banketje,' Schiedam 1980, vol. I, p. 197, cat. no. 493, reproduced fig. 269; vol. II, p. 99, cat. no. 493 (as Jan Olis).

The Amsterdam-born painter Jan Jansz. Treck executed this still life early in his career, during a period of close collaboration with his brother-in-law, Jan Jansz. den Uyl. Working in the tradition of Pieter Claesz. and Willem Claesz. Heda, Treck embraced a restrained style that contrasted with the more ornate compositions of his contemporaries. This work exemplifies the artist’s preference for presenting everyday objects in uncluttered arrangements and rendering them in subdued tones. While the silver cup, pewter plate, crab, lobster leg, and chestnuts hint at some measure of wealth and exoticism, the composition as a whole evokes the quiet familiarity of domestic life. The subtle tension between the overturned cup and isolated crab leg balances the scene’s calm, showcasing Treck’s ability to capture both stillness and disruption within a single moment.

We are grateful to Dr. Fred Meijer for suggesting this work may have been executed in the 1630s, possibly in collaboration with Jan Jansz. den Uyl.