Entitled The Return of the Hunt, after the original Nicolaes Berchem painting from the 1660s, this large oil on canvas painting is from the 1800s. This interpretation is a fantastic rendering of the original, which currently hangs in the J. Paul Getty Museum in Los Angeles.

Our version has earthy tones, such as brown, cream, and gold, that enable the congregating figures to stand out from the surrounding infrastructure. A hunter clad in red, with an ornate feathered hat, is the central figure, as he sits in the saddle of his white horse. Two of his companions (dressed in similar attire, but with blue and green coats) regale two less affluent citizens about the exploits of their hunt. Proof of their success can be seen on the ground, as a felled deer is displayed between two dogs from the hunting party. Many other hunting dogs are scattered about, with three, in particular, laying in a heap, as a fourth dog stays vigilant in the center of the pack.

Three other staffage can be seen interacting in the alley, just beneath a woman hanging laundry on a railing lined with a stone jardiniere full of green-leafed plants. In the background, high above the balcony railing, is an additional cityscape building under a light blue sky filled with clouds.

Nicolaes Berchem was born in Haarlem (part of the Dutch Republic at the time) in 1620. Italianate landscape painters such as Berchem, would make periodic journeys to Italy, to absorb the culture, and often to incorporate elements of the country into their work. Berchem was one of the more renowned second generation of Italianate painters, and his works inspired later-century landcape artists such as this unknown painter.

CONDITION: Very good antique condition. Commensurate craquelure with very light rubs to the canvas. Unframed, but the canvas has been stretched over wood supports.