Lot 32. A rare underglaze copper-red decorated ewer, Ming dynasty, Hongwu period (1368-1398); 33.5cm., 13 1/4 in. Estimate 70,000 — 90,000 GBP. Lot sold 96,000 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's.

the finely potted pear-shaped body rising from a short spreading foot to a tall flaring neck with everted rim, painted around the exterior in copper-red with four large peony heads borne on an undulating leafy scroll, divided to one side with a large strap handle decorated with a floral scroll and to the other with  a long curved spout joined to the body with a strut and similarly decorated with a lotus scroll, all between a lotus lappet band at the foot and peony, key-fret and stiff leaf bands at the neck.

Note: Hongwu underglaze-red pieces are extremely rare and only a small number of ewers of this form are recorded. For a detailed discussion of pear-shaped ewers and closely-related yuhuchun ping,  such as the present piece, see Sir John Addis, 'A Group of Underglaze Red', Transactions of the Oriental Ceramic Society, 1957-59, vol. 31, pp. 19-23, where the author notes that the design suited well the sturdy form of the vessel.

See a Hongwu ewer of this form and decoration, from the Qing Court collection and now in the Palace Museum, Beijing, illustrated in The Complete Collection of Treasures of the Palace Museum. Blue and White Porcelain with Underglazed red (I), Shanghai, 2000, pl. 201; further two ewers, one painted with lotus scroll around the main body, in the collection of the Percival David Foundation, London, and the other decorated with a landscape design with banana trees, bamboo and rockwork in the Matsuoka Art Museum, both included in Sekai toji zenshu, vol. 14, Tokyo, 1976, figs. 13 and 12; and a fourth example similarly painted with banana trees, formerly in the Palmer collection and sold in these rooms, 27th November 1962, published in Chinese Ceramics in the Idemitsu Collection, Tokyo, 1987, col. pl. 150, together with a blue and white ewer of this type, col. pl. 151. 

A copper-red decorated ewer, Ming dynasty, Hongwu period (1368-1398) from the Qing Court collection © Palace Museum, Beijing

Ewer with stylised lotus scroll, Ming dynasty, Hongwu period, AD 1368–98. Porcelain with underglaze copper-red decoration. Height: 325 mm. Width: 252 mm. Depth: 205 mm. Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province. On loan from Sir Percival David Foundation of Chinese Art. PDF A696. British Museum© The Trustees of the British Museum

A related Hongwu ewer painted in copper-red with flower-filled barbed panels, from the collections of Dr. J. Heller and the British Rail Pension Fund, was sold at Christie's London, 3rd December 1973, lot 46, and in these rooms, 30th March 1978, lot 174, and again, in our Hong Kong rooms, 16th May 1989, lot 9.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 16 May 2007

NEW YORK, NY.- An exceptional selection of European paintings, spanning from the 14th to the 19th centuries will be offered in Sotheby’s Evening Sale of Master Paintings on 1 February 2018 in New York. Highlighting the annual Masters Week sale series, the Evening Sale exhibition will be on public view in Sotheby’s New York galleries beginning 26 January. 

The February sale features a rare and striking portrait of Cristoforo Segni, Maggiordomo to Pope Innocent X, painted and signed by Velazquez and Cremonese painter Pietro Martire Neri Martire (estimate $3/4 million). Painted around 1650, during Velazquez’s second trip to Rome, the work is one of a series of portraits painted for the Court of Pope Innocent X on the occasion of his Jubilee, the most famous being Portrait of Innocent X (1650, Galleria Doria Pamphilij). Having remained hidden in the present collection since the mid-20th century, the painting was recently featured in a dedicated exhibition to Velazquez at the Grand Palais, Paris in 2015. Velazquez’s highly expressive and distinctive brushwork is clearly evident in areas of the canvas, in particular the head of the sitter. 

Lot 48. Diego Rodríguez de Silva y Velázquez (Seville 1599 - 1660 Madrid) and Pietro Martire Neri (Cremona 1601 - 1661), Portrait of Cristoforo Segni, Maggiordomo to Pope Innocent X, inscribed on the letter: Alla Sant.[i]ta di N[ost]ro Sig[no]re / Innocenzio Xo / Monsre Maggiordomo / ne parti a S[ua] S[anti]ta / Per / and signed, or bears signature: Dieg[?]o d. Silva Velasqu[ez] / [and in a different hand:] e Pietro Martire Neri, oil on canvas, 44 7/8  by 36 1/4  in.; 114 x 92 cm. Estimate 3,000,000 — 4,000,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's.

Provenance: Private collection, Bologna; 
Don José de Salamanca y Mayol, Marqués de Salamanca and 1st Conde de Llanos (1811–83); 
His sale (Galerie Salamanca), Paris, Hôtel Salamanca, Rue de la Victoire, 50, Pillet, Le Roy and Febvre, 3–6 June 1867, lot 37, unsold at 16,200 Francs (as Velázquez); Salamanca Collection sale, Paris, Hotel Drouot, Pillet and Haro, 25–26 January 1875, lot 35, for 19,300 Francs, to Luisa Gonzalés (as Velázquez); 
Luisa Gonzalés (1847–1924), wife of Auguste Dreyfus (1827–97), Hôtel Dreyfus, 3 avenue Ruysdaël, Paris; 
His sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, 29 May 1889, lot 115, for 5,600 francs (as Velázquez), where probably unsold; 
Thence probably by family descent to Anne de Talleyrand Périgord, Duchess de Premio Real, self-styled Duchess of Dreyfus-Gonzalez (1877-1945), Paris, by 1936; 
Probably acquired from the above, or from her heirs, by the father of the present owner in Paris, 1958.

Exhibited: Madrid, Casón del Buen Retiro, Velázquez y lo Velazqueño, 10 December 1960 – 23 February 1961, no. 103 (as Velázquez and Neri);
Paris, Grand Palais, Velázquez, 25 March – 13 July 2015, no. 77.

From a slightly elevated viewpoint, Brueghel opens a window onto early seventeenth century Flemish life, particularly the daily life of a village settled on the edge of a river on a clear, crisp, summer’s day.  The left half of the composition is dominated by an expansive waterway that pulls the eye into the depths of the landscape, from the jetty in the foreground, along the tree lined shore, to the faint outlines of ships on the distant horizon.  Here, the water seamlessly blends into a light blue sky with feathered white clouds and a golden yellow sun.  On the right half, balancing out the seemingly mirrored tranquility of the river and sky, is a bustling shoreline and landing site filled with colorful figures, animals, and remarkably drawn boats.  Beyond and through the trees at right appears a quiet village with houses, wooden sheds, horse drawn carts, and, in the distance, the steeple of a church. 

What adds another degree of grandeur to this multi-figure composition is the attention with which Brueghel has observed and captured not only the natural world around him, but also the minutia of the everyday.  A few ducks with orange bills paddle around the shallow waters of the near foreground, their movement forming faint puddles around them.  Two children in the boat nearby lean over the edge to observe a woman dipping a white cloth into the cool water.  A gentleman in the same boat uses a steering pole to steady a another vessel in the shallows while a mother passes her child to another woman on board the already rather full boat.   Two farmers relax with a basket of produce in the shade at right, as additional onlookers of various ages gather on shore beneath a line of lush trees awaiting the next vessel to carry them down the river.  Saddled horses appear in two of the other boats, suggesting that the desired destination on the river is perhaps a kermesseor a festive gathering, to and from which the villagers may be traveling.  

Towards the end of the sixteenth century Brueghel began to explore the theme of vast open seascapes near a shoreline as exemplified in a small oil on copper dated to circa 1592 in a private collection.1 By the first decade of the next century, however, he turned towards the more intimate river landscapes that employed an orthogonal body of water to order the rural scene by pulling the viewer’s eye to a vanishing point in the distance.  This technique was first introduced by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, Jan’s father, in his famous river landscape drawing of about 1556 now in the Kupferstichkabinett, Berlin.2 Jan’s familiarity with his father’s drawing, as well as this compositional device, is recorded both in a copy he made after his father’s work as well as in a comparable drawing of about 1600 in the Musée du Louvre, Paris.3  What is revolutionary about the present composition, however, is the way that Brueghel uses not only the river orthogonal but also introduces the steep diagonal of the shoreline to create a more realistic sense of space and depth that runs from right to left

The river landscape subject proved popular among Jan Brueghel’s clientele on copper and panel, particularly during the second decade of the seventeenth century.  Unlike his brother Pieter Brueghel the Younger who responded to the popular demand by producing copies of his own works, Jan Brueghel the Elder approached each river landscape independently, always making variations to his compositions so that rarely any two were exactly alike.  An early forerunner to the present painting is found in a copper datable to around 1604 in the Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nantes (fig. 1).4  While the two are related in terms of composition, the present painting, completed over a decade after, is more sophisticated in handling, particularly in the rendering of depth within the picture plane as there is a seamless transition foreground, to middleground, to background.    

fig. 1. Jan Brueghel the Elder (1568-1625), The Embarkation, oil on canvas, Musée des Beaux-Arts, Nantes, France/ Bridgeman Images

This painting is first recorded in the English royal collection. It belonged to King Charles I (1600–1649) and was displayed alongside the King's most highly prized Titians at Whitehall. It is listed there in the inventory of 1639 drawn up by Abraham van der Doort, as hanging in the First Privy Lodging Room: ‘Done by Tichian/ Item the Picture of St Margarett with a little reed cross in her left hand triumphing over the Divell Being in a dragons Shape an intire figure Soe bigg as ye life In a wodden guilded frame’. The Saint Margaret hung in the principal room of Titians, with the early Pesaro presented to Peter(Koninklijk Museum voor Schone Kunsten, Antwerp) and other remarkable works such as Venus with an Organist (fig. 1) and The Allocution of the Marquis del Vasto to his Troops (both Prado, Madrid); The Entombment of Christ, The Supper at Emmaus and the 'Allegory of Alfonso d'Avalos' (all three now at the Musée du Louvre, Paris); and Woman in a Fur(Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna).2  

fig. 1. Titian, Venus and Music, circa 1550, oil on canvas, 138 by 222.4 cm. Museo del Prado.

Soon after the King's execution, the decision was taken by Parliament to sell off his collections. Full inventories were drawn up and valuations given with a view to the money raised from their sale paying off the King's debts. The King's creditors were entitled to acquire pictures; others were paid in goods from Charles's estate. In the case of the Saint Margaret it was sold to John Embry, a royal plumber, whose name appears on the First List of the late King's servants and creditors comprising those most in need. Francis Haskell in his essay on Charles I's collection cites Embry's case as a representative example of a member of the King's retinue who had remained unpaid. The present work, which is listed in an inventory of pictures drawn up in September 1649, was valued at £100. As Haskell describes, Embry was owed £903 and was recompensed only partly in cash. To cover the remaining sum he was allowed to choose pictures to make up the value – among them the present painting of Saint Margaret.3 According to Nuttall, of the twenty-four pictures given to him as settlement of the debt, the Saint Margaret was the most important. Presumably Embry's objective was then to sell it as quickly as possible and convert it into cash. During the Commonwealth Embry became Oliver Cromwell's Surveyor-General of Works and subsequently, at the Restoration, found himself obliged to defend his position, returning a portion of the pictures to Charles II.4 The picture is next recorded in Hampshire, in the collection of Richard Norton (d. 1732), though it is not known how he acquired it. He may have inherited it from his grandfather Colonel Norton (d. 1692). The Saint Margaretthen entered a British aristocratic collection where it remained until the mid-twentieth century.   

The Saint Margaret is likely to have been begun at the same time as the Prado painting, which is generally recognised as the prime version of the composition and dated to the mid-1560s. Indeed it seems probable that the present work was painted alongside the version now in the Prado, with Titian utilising his workshop to block in areas of the painting but finishing the key areas of the painting himself. The expressive power of Titian’s later style is nowhere more clearly demonstrated than in the lyrical and atmospheric depiction of the city of Venice on fire in the background. On the skyline the campanile of St Mark glows in fiery orange and pinks, whilst the stormy waves of the sea are animated by dark blue and green brushstrokes. In the sky billowing smoke rises upwards to intermingle with the clouds in a passage of painting that presages that of the Impressionists, more than three centuries later.

The x-radiograph reveals much more vigorous application of paint in places that now appear rather dark and flat, including the area to the left of the head now covered with brown paint, and changes to the structure of the dragon, as well as modifications to the city skyline. A photograph of the painting taken at the time of the Harcourt sale in 1948 shows the larger extent of the canvas at the top edge of the composition before it was reduced, at some point before 1958. The composition was then more closely comparable to that of the Prado version.    

As is characteristic with Titian’s late works, the darker tones, fiery landscape and summary handling of the paint in the present work create a sense of drama that is entirely fitting to the narrative. Margaret of Antioch was a legendry virgin martyr. She refused a proposal of marriage from the prefect of Antioch and was cruelly tortured and imprisoned as a result. Satan allegedly appeared to her in the form of a dragon and devoured her. The cross she held in her hand irritated the monster’s insides and the dragon burst open allowing her to escape unharmed, only to be subsequently decapitated. Panofsky notes that Titian’s decision to depict Saint Margaret and the dragon in an outdoor setting suggests he was using an apocryphal version of the legend.5

Titian’s Saint Margaret is conceived with a profound understanding of the dramatic potential of the scene. She is a triumphant figure whose body, depicted in dramatic contrapposto, fills the entire right-hand side of picture plane, almost touching the right-hand and lower margins. Prof. Paul Joannides has noted Titian's deliberate comparison with Raphael and Giulio Romano's versions of the same subject (Giulio's Saint Margaret was in Venice in the early sixteenth-century, in the collection of Zuananonio Venier, today housed in the Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna). Titian's Margaret surpasses the serenity of Giulio's interpretation, which lacks the intensity of expression and setting. Titian's saint is painted in a myriad of colours and her luminous light green tunic with its bright white sleeves and rose pink veil stands out from the more earthy, brown based tones of the rest of the canvas. The dragon that occupies the bottom resister of the canvas is predominantly painted in brown and blackish hues and the only flashes of colour are the strokes of red and white delineating his vicious mouth. The implied movement in Saint Margaret’s twisting body contrasts to the stolidity of the rock face behind her and she emerges from the picture plane as an impressive figure, trampling the dragon underfoot and holding her cross aloft.

The painting was inspected on 28 September 2012 by Prof. Peter Humfrey and Dr Nicholas Penny. Both believe it to have been painted as a second version of the Prado picture and with a significant degree of studio assistance. Prof. Humfrey saw the painting again in person on 27 October 2017. In his opinion the Saint Margaret is a picture produced under Titian’s direction in his workshop, with the execution largely due to the workshop but parts, such as the landscape in the background, possibly involving the direct involvement of Titian himself. Prof. Joannides inspected the painting on 26 October 2017; he maintains his view, published in 2004, that it is by Titian and his studio. The Royal Collection is currently working on an online reconstruction of the collection of Charles I at Whitehall Palace, which will include the present work. We are grateful to all those cited for their comments. In particular we wish to thank Lucy Whitaker and Niko Munz at the Royal Collection for their help in compiling this catalogue entry.

1. P00455. See H.E. Wethey, The Paintings of Titian, London 1969, vol. I, cat no. 117, pp. 141–42. One other treatment of the subject is recorded, now in the Escorial, a painting sent to Philip in October 1552, today is in very poor condition, making it difficult to determine the extent of the workshop's participation (210 x 170 cm.; Humfrey 2007, no. 187). 
2. See Millar 1958–60, pp. 14–16. 
3. See Nuttall 1965, p. 303 and ff. In the record of the sale the pictures acquired in this way are shown as having been 'sold'. 
4. Six pictures according to Nuttall; 9 according to Brotton; see Brotton 2006, p. 319. Brotton states that Titian's Saint Margaret had been sold to Don Alonso de Cárdenas, Spanish Ambassador to Philip IV. However the picture is not listed in 'A Record of the Paintings at Somerset House, which belonged to the King and Queen, that were sold to the Lord Ambassador of Spain', see A.J. Loomie, 'New Light on the Spanish Ambassador's Purchases from Charles I's Collection 1649-53', Journal of the Warburg and Courtauld Institutes, vol. 52, 1989, pp. 257-67.
5. E. Panofsky, Problems in Titian: Mostly Iconographic, London 1969, pp. 34–35. Indeed, Dr. Michel Weemans, curator of Une image peut en cacher une autre, Paris, Grand Palais, 2009, has speculated (private communication to the owner) that the presence of anthropomorphic shapes in the form of dragons’ heads that he detects in the rocks surrounding the saint  may allude to the legend of the Lernaean Hydra – the saint having overcome the dragon only to be faced with a proliferation of new threats around her. If so, this would suggest an additional level of involvement in the design of this version on the part of the artist. 

Although they make up only a fraction of his considerable and varied artistic output, Sir Anthony van Dyck’s depictions of children are among the most memorable and enchanting works that the artist produced. Portrait of Prince Willem II of Orange as a Young Boy, with a Dog perfectly exemplifies this subject, portraying the innocence of the five-year-old Prince, without sacrificing his nobility (estimate $2/3 million). Two versions of this charming painting by van Dyck are recorded in period sources - one painted for the parents of Prince Willem II, and another version made for King Charles I of England. Recent cleaning of the present work and its subsequent public exhibition at the Rubenshuis Museum in Antwerp has led scholars to believe that this painting is almost certainly the recorded version painted for King Charles I. 

Lot 42. Sir Anthony van Dyck (Antwerpt 1599 - 1641 London), Portrait of Prince Willem II of Orange as a Young Boy, With A Dog. Oil on canvas, 50 1/2  by 39 1/2  in.; 128.3 by 100.4 cm. Estimate 2,000,000 — 3,000,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's. 

Provenance: Almost certainly King Charles I of England, by August 1632 (see note below), and included in the sale of the "Late King’s Goods", 1st March 1652/3, No. 278, ‘A Dutch Prince at length, wth a dog’, where acquired by Edward Bass and John Hunt;
Michael Humble, Esq., of Gwersyllt Park, Denbighshire (according to a label on the reverse, see note below);
Bartlett Joshua Palmer, Davenport, Iowa (inscription on the reverse);
Anonymous Sale, Christies New York, 26th January 2011, lot 19, (as Studio of Sir Anthony van Dyck), where acquired by the present owner for his personal collection.

Exhibited: Antwerp, Rubenshuis Museum, 2012-2016.

Literature: Rubenshuis Guide, no.41 (as the version painted by van Dyck for King Charles I);
See also under Barnes, de Poorter, Miller & Vey, ‘Van Dyck: A Complete Catalogue of the Paintings’, New Haven, 2004, Cat. III. 114, p. 339-40, where Horst Vey notes a lost version of the composition, painted by van Dyck for King Charles I.

Note: Two versions of this charming painting by van Dyck are recorded in period sources, one painted for the parents of Prince Willem II, and another version made for King Charles I of England.  The portrait painted for the sitter’s parent descended in the family and is today in the Schloss Mosigkau museum (fig. 1).  This fascinating painting’s recent reappearance, followed by a careful cleaning and subsequent public exhibition at the Rubenshuis Museum in Antwerp, has afforded scholars the opportunity to reassess it, confirming its status as an important work by the master, which in all likelihood is the hitherto lost painting documented as made by van Dyck for King Charles I of England.

fig. 1. Sir Anthony van Dyck, Portrait of Prince Willem II of Orange, Schloss Mosigkau, Dessau, Germany.

Although they make up only a fraction of his considerable and varied artistic output, van Dyck’s depictions of children are among the most memorable and enchanting works that the artist ever produced.  This delightful portrait of Prince Willem II of Orange exemplifies the genre.  It depicts the young Prince at about 5½ years wearing a long gown of golden orange silk (the color of his princely house) with slashed sleeves, decorated with lace collar and cuffs.  He wears a plumed cap of black velvet and stands in a relaxed and elegant pose, gazing to his right as does his dog, as if someone is drawing their attention.  Van Dyck deftly indicates the young Prince’s lineage with a symbolic orange tree at the left, while behind hangs a rich tapestry arras, rendered in flickering brushstrokes, and embroidered with the arms and lion of the House of Nassau.

In the winter of 1631/32, van Dyck set north from Antwerp to the court of The Hague, having been summoned by Frederick Hendrick, Prince of Orange, an invitation that only served to boost his already considerable reputation.  He arrived before 28th January 1632, when no less a personage than Constantijn Huygens noted that he had just that day been sitting to the painter.1  In addition to the Dutch prince’s patronage, van Dyck no doubt hoped to broaden his prospects, not only by leaving the confines and limitations of his native city, but also with an eye to a move across the Channel to the English court.  King Charles I’s agent Balthasar Gerbier had been assiduously wooing the painter for some time, attempting to secure his services, and while a final decision had not been made, one was imminent.   In addition, Prince Frederick Hendrik and his wife Amalia van Solms hosted Elizabeth Stuart, the deposed Queen of Bohemia, who was Charles I’s sister.  Thus, van Dyck’s arrival appears to be a canny decision, not only for the commissions it afforded, but as a way to ingratiate himself further with the Stuart dynasty. Van Dyck would, in fact, arrive in England just a short time afterwards, in April 1632 where, save for occasional sojourns, he would remain for the rest of his life in the service of the King.

While in The Hague, van Dyck painted portraits of the ruling family, Frederick Hendrik, Prince of Orange (fig. 2, Baltimore Museum of Art, inv. 1938.217) and Amalia van Solms (fig. 3, Tokyo Fuji Museum, Tokyo, Japan), as well as their eldest son and heir, Willem II ( fig. 1, Schloss Mosigkau, near Dessau, Germany).2 Perhaps unfettered by the courtly expectations required of an image for a sitting monarch, the painting of Willem II is both formal and informal at the same time, and shows van Dyck’s extraordinary abilities to their most potent effect.  Van Dyck captures perfectly the innocence of a young boy, but sacrifices nothing of his nobility in doing do.  Drawing on the influence of Titian, notably his portrait of Clarice Strozzi(fig. 4, Gemäldegalerie, Berlin), van Dyck developed a pictorial language for the depiction of young nobles which was to influence artists such as Gainsborough, Reynolds and Sargent in the centuries to come.

fig. 2. Sir Anthony van Dyck, Flemish (1599-1641), Frederick Henry, Prince of Orange, 1628. 45 x 38 in. (114.3 x 96.5 cm., oil on canvas. Credit Line: The Mary Frick Jacobs Collection.

fig. 3. Anthony van Dyck (1599-1641), Portrait of Amalia von Solms-Braunfels (1602-75) 1629, oil on canvas, 114.3 x 95.9 cm. © Tokyo Fuji Art Museum

fig. 4. Titian (Tiziano Vecellio) (c. 1488-1576), Portrait of Clarissa Strozzi at the Age of Two, 1542, oil on canvas, 115 x 98 cm. Inv. 160A. Photo: Joerg P. Anders. Gemaeldegalerie, Photo Credit:bpk Bildagentur / Art Resource, NY.

In addition to the aforementioned set ordered by Prince Frederik, van Dyck was commissioned by King Charles I, whose eldest daughter Mary was to marry Willem nine years later, to complete a further set:

Sir Anthony vandike hath by o’ Command made and presented us wth divers pictures…of the Prince of Orange…another of the princesse of Orange wth another of their sonne at half length at Twenty pounds appeece.

Payment for these were authorized in a Royal Warrant dated 8th August 1632.  The reference to ‘half length’ portraits was evidently shorthand for the whole group, two of which were true half lengths – an inference confirmed by the reference at the sale of King Charles I’s collection in 1652 (No. 278), where it was described as ‘A Dutch Prince at length wth a dog’.

A full length studio or later copy of the composition is preserved at Petworth, where the dog appears to adhere to the type in the present example, rather than the Mosigkau picture.  The breed of the dog, which appears to be a whippet cross, is more robust and muscular in the present painting, and also has a more pronounced snout, thus suggesting that it was the prototype brought to England and furnished the template for the Petworth copy.3 No other autograph version of this composition is recorded. 

The present Portrait of Willem II of Orange is thus almost certainly the recorded version painted for King Charles I. The relationship between the Mosigkau version and the present canvas is particularly fascinating and informative. The condition of the Dessau picture has been somewhat compromised in the past, but it is clear that the painting does have similar handling of paint to the present work. Perhaps the most striking difference between the two versions is in the quality and characterization of the dog, which is finer and anatomically more sophisticated in the present painting. Pentiments also exist in the present composition.  Some, such as that along the contour of the Prince’s collar in front of the tapestry, as well as subtle shifts in the hands, and around the dog’s head and legs are visible to the naked eye, while infra-red technology further reveals the freedom and spontaneity with which it was painted.  While it is perhaps pointless to discuss primacy in the case of two pictures which would have been produced either simultaneously or nearly so, these details would suggest that the present composition may indeed be the first version.  In light of the importance of King Charles I to van Dyck from 1632 onwards, and his reputation as a connoisseur, this would not be surprising. 

Note on the Provenance:

The portraits of the Orange family painted for Charles I remained in the Royal Collection until after the execution of Charles when the collection was sold by the Commonwealth in one of the most famous art dispersals in history. On 1st March, 1652, as lot 278, ‘A Dutch Prince at length, with a dog,’ presumably the present painting, was sold to Edward Bass and John Hunt, both creditors of the late king.

Edward Bass was a royal official under Charles I who, together with John Hunt was one of a handful of insiders who purchased a large quantity of the late King’s goods, and were amongst the chief beneficiaries of the sale. Bass headed no fewer than three of the fourteen ‘dividends’ (syndicates created by the King’s creditors, formed for the purpose of taking goods in lieu of payment), while Hunt (a former linen draper to Queen Henrietta Maria) was one of the sale’s treasurers. In addition to van Dyck’s portrait of Prince Willem II, Edward Bass also owned the jewel of the Royal Collection - Raphael’s Holy Family, ‘La Perla,’ now at the Museo del Prado. Bass was one of the ‘undoubted winners in the sale’ who formed part of the group of ‘cosmopolitan artists, dealers and merchants’ who were ‘the real specialists in money and art, and employed by all sides – crown, republic, dividends and foreign embassies’ (see J. Brotton, The Sale of the Late King’s Goods, 2006, pp. 258, 266, 283, 308-9).

As with so many paintings from the Royal Collection, the Portrait of Willem II as well as those of his parents were subsequently dispersed, and remained untraced for many years.4  A label on the reverse of the present painting is inscribed with the name of Michael Humble, possibly Michael Humble of Gwersyllt Park, Denbighshire Wales. The reverse of the stretcher is also inscribed with the name B.J. Palmer. Bartlett Joshua Palmer (1882–1961), of Davenport, Iowa, was one of the founders of modern chiropractic practice. He amassed a large collection of art and Asian antiquities, which was on view at his clinic at Davenport.

We are grateful to Dr Malcolm Rogers, Professor Christopher Brown and Dr Susan Barnes for each independently confirming  the attribution of the present painting to Sir Anthony van Dyck based on their first hand inspection.

1. It must have been a stormy day, as Huygens noted ‘Pingor a Van Dyckio, cum arbor in aedes lapsus esset [I am being painted by van Dyck when a tree fell against the house]’. That portrait, sadly, is lost.

2. Schloss Mosigkau was built for Anna Wilhelmina von Anhalt-Dessau who at her death in 1780 bequeathed the building and its contents to form a monastery for well born aristocratic girls, a foundation which remained until 1945, becoming a museum in 1951.

3. Other copies of varying quality and age are at Welbeck Abbey and Warwick Castle, as well as museums in Prague and Riga, and at the Hallwylska Museet, Stockholm, none of which are of autograph quality.

4. For the portraits of Frederick Hendrik and Amalia van Solms painted by van Dyck for Charles I, see Barnes et al (ibid), p.338-9, under cat III. 112 & 113, where the versions preserved in the Prado, Madrid, are each noted as “probably the version bought by Charles I in 1632”. While many paintings in the Royal Collection bore an identifying brand on the back of the canvas, Sir Oliver Millar’s discussion of this practice in his introduction to ‘Abraham Van der Doort's catalogue of the collections of Charles I’ (Walpole Society, XLIII, 1960) makes it clear that many were not so marked.

The sale also offers an outstanding group of works from the renowned collection of J.E. Safra. In addition to important paintings by Jan Wijnants, Joseph-Marie Vien and Vanvitelli, the collection is led by a pair of still-life paintings from the pioneering female painter Fede Galizia (estimate $2/3 million). Celebrated for her still-life painting in Italy and throughout Europe in the first quarter of the 17th century – particularly ones depicting fruit – the present pair is a testament to the artist’s sensitive approach to subject matter and acute eye for detail. 

Lot 36. A good fahua'Eight Immortals' jar, Ming dynasty, 15th century; 35cm., 13 3/4 in. Estimate 12,000 — 15,000 GBP. Lot sold 14,400 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's.

of sturdily potted baluster form, finely slip decorated, incised and brightly glazed in aubergine, yellow and turquoise around the exterior with the 'Eight Immortals', each standing holding his respective attribute amidst cloud scrolls, tumultuous foaming waves and mountains, reserved on a rich dark blue ground, all between a lotus-lappet band at the waisted base and a bajixiang-filled ruyi collar at the broad shoulder, the short tapering neck with three cloud scrolls, the interior glazed green.

Note: For a very similar jar, see J. Harrison-Hall, Ming Ceramics in the British Museum, London, 2001, no.13.20, which the author dates to the late 15th/early 16th Century; another closely related example is illustrated in R. Krahl, Chinese Ceramics: The Anthony de Rothschild Collection, vol. 1, London, 1996, no. 72.

Porcelain wine jar and cover with incised and 'fahua'-type decoration, Ming dynasty, circa 1488-1522. Height: 43.5 cm; Franks.195.+ © 2017 Trustees of the British Museum 

Lot 28. A large 'Cizhou' dragon jar, Yuan dynasty (1279-1366); 43.5cm., 17 1/8 in. Estimate 10,000 - 12,000 GBP. Lot sold 15,600 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the broad shouldered globular body rising from a flat base to a short neck, painted around the exterior in a dark chocolate brown slip with two large quatrefoil panels, one enclosing a large scaly five-clawed dragon in pursuit of a flaming pearl, the other enclosing a phoenix in flight amidst cloud scrolls, all divided by smaller cusped panels and below a broad foliate band reserved on a cream ground, the interior glazed chocolate brown.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 16 May 2007

Lot 22. A 'Yaozhou' carved 'Peony' tripod censer, Five Dynasties (907-960); 10.5cm., 4 1/8 in. diam. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 GBP. Lot sold 74,400 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

of slightly compressed globular form with broad short waisted mouth, freely carved and incised around the exterior with a continuous leafy peony scroll, all supported on three short cabriole legs and covered overall in a pale bluish-green glaze.

'Yaozhou' vessels of this unusual form are extremely rare although a very similar example, in the Jiangxi Provincial Museum, is illustrated in Yaozhou Kiln, Xi'an, 1992, p.53.  See also fragments of a 'Yaozhou' jar of related globular body carved with the design of floral scroll, included in Liu Liang-yu,  A Survey of Chinese Ceramics. Sung Wares, Taipei, 1991, p. 97 bottom left.

Lot 10. A very rare marbled bowl, Early Northern Song dynasty; 16.5cm., 6 1/2 in. Estimate 12,000 — 15,000 GBP. Lot sold 12,000 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the body of deep U-shape with gently curved sides rising from a flat base to an indented rim, finely potted with cream and dark brown coloured clays creating irregular flower-like whorls, covered inside and out with a transparent ivory coloured glaze.

Provenance: Sotheby's New York, 4th December 1984, lot 297

Note: A marbled bowl of similar shape, from the Eumorfopoulos Collection, is in the Victoria and Albert Museum, London, inventory no. C.602-1918; and another slightly smaller bowl of related form with irregular marbling is illustrated in Zhongguo taoci quanji, vol. 7, Shanghai, 2000, pl. 198, from the collection of the Henan Provincial Museum and attributed to the Dangyangyu manufactories. Another smaller bowl of this marbled body is published in Regina Krahl, Chinese Ceramics from the Meiyintang Collection, vol. Three (two), London, 2006, pl. 1528.

Bowl, stoneware of marbled clay, Cizhou ware, China, Northern Song dynasty, 960-1000. Given by Mr Aubrey Le Blond, C.602-1918 © Victoria and Albert Museum, London 2017. 

Lot 14. A rare un-glazed marbled cup, Northern Song dynasty; 9cm., 3 1/2 in. Estimate 5,000 — 7,000 GBP. Lot sold 4,800 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the deep globular body rising from a short spreading foot to a wide incurving mouth, finely potted from marbled clays of buff and dark brown tone creating an irregular whorl pattern.

Provenance: Christie's New York, 25th March 1998, lot 173.

Note: A closely related cup is published in the Illustrated Catalogues of Tokyo National Museum. Chinese Ceramics I, Tokyo, 1988, cat.no. 579, together with a cupstand; another, from the collection of Lord Cunliffe and included in the Oriental Ceramic Society exhibition Arts of the Tang Dynasty, Victoria and Albert Museum, London, 1970, cat.no. 63, was sold at Christie's London, 19th April 1983, lot 36.

Lot 15. A rare marbled saucer dish, Northern Song dynasty; 16.8cm, 6 5/8 in. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 GBP. Lot sold 13,200 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the shallow flaring sides rising from a flat base to an everted lipped rim, finely potted with striated cream and dark brown coloured clays creating a radiating feathered pattern and encircled at the rim with a band of cream coloured clay, covered inside and out with a transparent ivory coloured glaze.

Note: A similar marbled dish, in the Shandong Provincial Museum, is illustrated in Zhongguo wenwu jinghua daquan. Taoci juan, Shanghai, 1993, pl. 250; and another is included in the Illustrated Catalogues of Tokyo National Museum. Chinese Ceramics I, Tokyo, 1988, cat.no. 574. Compare also two larger marbled dishes in the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, illustrated in Oriental Ceramics. The World's Great Collections. vol. 10, Tokyo, 1980, pls. 30 and 72.  

Dish, Song dynasty (960–1279), 2.6 x 16.9 cm (1 x 6 5/8 in.). Bequest of Charles Bain Hoyt—Charles Bain Hoyt Collection, 50.2063 © 2018 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Dish, Song dynasty (960–1279), 1.8 x 18.3 cm (11/16 x 7 3/16 in.). Bequest of Charles Bain Hoyt—Charles Bain Hoyt Collection, 50.2065 © 2018 Museum of Fine Arts, Boston

Lot 9. A rare marbled yuhuchunping, Song-Jin dynasty (960-1234); 28.5cm., 11 1/4 in. Estimate 8,000 — 10,000 GBP. Lot sold 7,200 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the elegant pear-shaped body rising from a short spreading foot to a tall flaring neck with everted rim, well-potted from marbled clays of buff and dark brown tone creating an irregular pattern of whorls in imitation of marble, covered overall with a translucent ivory coloured glaze.

Note: Large marbled wares of the Song period, such as the present bottle vase, are extremely rare and more common are small vessels such as bowls and dishes. No other similar example appears to be recorded, although a marbled globular jar, in the Jilin Provincial Museum, is illustrated in Jilin Shen Bowu Guan, Beijing, 1992, pl. 174. 

For the form of this vase see a plain yuhuchun ping illustrated in Zhongguo taoci quanji, vol. 7, Shanghai 2000, pl. 216, of very similar size and elegant shape.  

Lot 13. A rare marbled-glazed dish, Jin dynasty (1115-1234); 17.7cm, 7in. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 GBP. Lot sold 8,400 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the body with gently curved flaring sides rising from a short straight foot to an inverted rolled rim, covered overall in a pale cream glaze pooling in teardrops down the exterior and falling short of the foot revealling the buff coloured body, freely decorated to the interior with dark chocolate brown splashes in imitation of marble.  

Lot 224. A 'Cizhou''Dragon and Phoenix' jar, Yuan dynasty (1279-1366); 33.2cm., 13 1/8 in. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 GBP. Lot sold 25,000 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

the tapering ovoid body surmounted by a straight neck, painted in brown slip on an ivory-white ground with two shaped cartouches, one enclosing a dragon leaping from waves and the other a phoenix, all divided by floral sprays and geometric motifs, encircled by an undulating leafy floral scroll above.  

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 7 november 20012

 Lot 211. An Imperially Inscribed Grey Pottery Jar. The Vessel, Zhou Dynasty-Warring States Period, The Qianlong Inscription Dated 1769; 26cm., 10 1/4 in. Estimate 20,000 — 30,000 GBP. Lot sold 735,650 GBP. Photo: Sotheby's

he globular body rising from a slightly concave base to a short cylindrical neck with everted rim, impressed around the exterior with a geometric pattern and incised to the inside of the neck and rim with eight five-character lines, composed by the Qianlong Emperor in the Summer of the cylindrical year jichou, and inscribed by Imperial order, seal Dechong fu (Tally of Virtue Replete).

Provenance: Collection of Sir Percival and Lady David.
Sotheby's, London, 5th December 1961, lot 25.
Bluett's, London.  

Literature: R.L. Hobson, A Catalogue of Chinese Pottery and Porcelain in the Collection of Sir Percival David, London, 1936, p. 181.

Note: The inscribed poem is titled Yong Taozun (Song for a Pottery Zun Wine Vessel), recorded in the Yuzhi shiji (Imperial Poetry Collection), compiled in the Siku quanshu (Library of the Four Treasures), third collection (sanji), 79:17a. It can be translated as follows:

Potter’s clay successfully formed this zun,
No different than if cut out of the earth intact!
Arrayed in antiquity with wooden and bamboo vessels,
It had the same origin as very agriculture itself.
Lifting it to drink, I look loftily into the distance,
But, for the way it looks, have nothing to say,
Though the “Ancestor Ding” and “Father Yi” vessels,
It’s immediately obvious, are its direct descendants.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 7 november 2012

Lot 202. A Sancai-Glazed Flat-Backed Ewer, Tang dynasty; 12.5cm., 5in. Estimate 5,000 — 7,000 GBP. Lot sold 10,625 GBP. Photo Sotheby's

modelled in the form of a Persian leather water bottle, the flat-backed globular body with flaring spout and high arched handle, the front face with an intaglio ochre and cream-splashed shield-shaped panel, all reserved on a green-glazed ground.

Provenance: Collection of Eisenbach Erie.
Sydney L. Moss, London.
John Sparks, London, 3rd March 1971.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 7 november 2012

Lot 205. A Sancai-Glazed Pottery Jar, Tang Dynasty; 12.5cm., 4 7/8 in. Estimate 4,000 — 6,000 GBP. Lot sold 10,000 GBP. Photo Sotheby's

the globular body rising from a flat base to a broad circular mouth, set at the shoulder with a pair of ring handles and covered overall with splashed ochre, green and cream glazes falling short of the base to reveal the pale buff body.

Provenance: John Sparks, London, 28th June 1962.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 7 november 2012

Lot 204. A Blue-Splashed Pottery Jar, Tang Dynasty; 16cm., 6 1/4 in. Estimate 6,000 — 8,000 GBP. Lot sold 9,375 GBP. Photo Sotheby's

the broad-shouldered body rising from a short spreading foot to a waisted short neck with everted rolled rim, covered overall in a pale whitish glaze suffused with irregular blue splashes, all falling short of the base to reveal the pale pinkish-buff body.

Provenance: The Property of a Lady.
Sotheby's London, 2nd March 1971, lot 122.
Eskenazi, London.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 7 november 2012

Lot 203. A Sancai-Glazed Pottery Tripod Incense Burner and Cover, Tang Dynasty; 19.5cm., 7 3/4 in. Estimate 6,000 — 8,000 GBP. Lot sold 8,125 GBP. Photo Sotheby's

the compressed globular body rising from three short cabriole legs to a short flaring neck and everted rim, covered overall with irregular green, ochre and cream splashes falling short of the underside to reveal the pale pinkish-buff body, the similarly glazed domed cover surmounted by a lotus bud finial. Quantity: 2

Provenance: Frank Caro, New York, 30th November 1968.

Sotheby's. Fine Chinese Ceramics & Works of Art, London, 7 november 2012

Francesco Guardi, The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi. Oil on canvas, 47⅛ x 80½ in (119.7 x 204.3 cm). Sold for £26,796,000 at Christie's London, 6 July 2017. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

LONDON.- Arts Minister John Glen has placed a temporary export bar on the Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi by Francesco Guardi to provide an opportunity to keep it in the country. 

The extraordinary painting is at risk of being exported from the UK unless a buyer can be found to match the asking price of £26,796,000 (including VAT of £591,000). 

With its masterful colouring and dynamic composition in which a series of gondolas bisect the Grand Canal, The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi showcases Guardi’s atmospheric style and the elegant depiction of light that would come to dominate his later works. 

Arguably Guardi’s masterpiece, the painting is considered to be one of the ultimate expressions of Venetian vedute, or view painting. Alongside Canaletto and his nephew Bellotto, Guardi was one of the great Venetian view painters of the 18th century. 

Francesco Guardi, The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi, detail. Oil on canvas, 47⅛ x 80½ in (119.7 x 204.3 cm). Sold for £26,796,000 at Christie's London, 6 July 2017. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

He was much admired in the 19th century for his impressionistic depictions of Venice and the Lagoon, which inspired many generations of artists visiting the city, most significantly Turner. 

The painting is believed to have been commissioned in 1768 by the relatively unknown grand tourist, Chaloner Arcedeckne, making it of great importance to the study of the British relationship with Venice and Grand Tour commissions. 

Arts Minister John Glen said: This magnificent painting is a true masterpiece that encapsulates the vibrant atmosphere and light of 18th century Venice. I very much hope that it can be kept in the UK, where it can be appreciated and admired by future generations for many years to come. 

The decision to defer the export licence follows a recommendation by the Reviewing Committee on the Export of Works of Art and Objects of Cultural Interest (RCEWA), administered by The Arts Council.  

Francesco Guardi, The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi, detail. Oil on canvas, 47⅛ x 80½ in (119.7 x 204.3 cm). Sold for £26,796,000 at Christie's London, 6 July 2017. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

RCEWA member Aidan Weston-Lewis said: At more than six feet across, this beautifully composed, bustling view of one of the classic stretches of the Grand Canal is one of the most spectacular and attractive Venetian view paintings in this country. Commissioned by a British visitor to Venice in the late 1760s, it has remained in the UK ever since and has frequently been on public display. Its departure from these shores would be a regrettable loss. 

The RCEWA made its recommendation on the grounds of the painting’s outstanding aesthetic importance and outstanding significance for the study of the development of Guardi, Venetian view painting and the study of Grand Tour patronage and taste. 

The decision on the export licence application for the painting will be deferred until 4 July 2018. This may be extended until 4 January 2019 if a serious intention to raise funds to purchase it is made at the recommended price of £26,796,000 (including VAT of £591,000). 

Organisations or individuals interested in purchasing the painting should contact the RCEWA on 0845 300 6200.

Francesco Guardi, The Rialto Bridge with the Palazzo dei Camerlenghi, detail. Oil on canvas, 47⅛ x 80½ in (119.7 x 204.3 cm). Sold for £26,796,000 at Christie's London, 6 July 2017. © Christie's Images Ltd 2017

Lot 101. A small green-splashed pottery tripod censer and cover, Tang dynasty (618-907). Width 3 1/4  in., 8.2 cm. Estimate 8,000 — 12,000 USD. Lot sold 10,000 USD. Photo: Sotheby's

the globular body raised on three short paw-form feet and rising to an everted rim, slipped and applied with a transparent glaze and vibrant green splashes, the domed cover similarly glazed (2).

Hans Holbein the Younger, A Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling (Anne Lovell?), about 1526-8. Oil on oak, 56 x 38.8 cm © The National Gallery, London.

LONDON.- The Masterpiece Tour is part of the National Gallery’s commitment to promote the understanding, knowledge, and appreciation of Old Master paintings to as wide an audience as possible. This opportunity to bring hugely popular works to the public’s doorstep is being made possible by the generous support of Christie’s. 

The New Art Gallery Walsall 
12 January – 22 April 2018 
Located in the West Midlands, the New Art Gallery Walsall was opened by the Queen in 2000 as one of a number of cultural projects inaugurated for the millennium. A focus for civic pride and community identity for the people of Walsall and the region, the Gallery has a permanent collection of over 3,000 works and aims to explore ways in which art galleries can contribute to people’s lives; connecting visitors with the work of the best contemporary and historic artists. 

Stephen Snoddy, Director said: "The New Art Gallery Walsall is truly honoured to have been chosen by the National Gallery to be the first host venue to exhibit Hans Holbein’s 'A Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling' as part of the 2018 Masterpiece Tour. We’re delighted that the people of Walsall and our region will be able to come and enjoy this masterpiece. It will be the centrepiece display in our Family Gallery in the New Year and be shown alongside complementary works from our collection." 

Shetland Museum & Archives 
4 May – 15 July 2018 
The next stop on the tour is one of the most far-flung locations in the UK – Lerwick in the Shetland Islands of Scotland. Shetland Museum & Archives is an award-winning tourist attraction, welcoming on average 86,000 visitors per year to its island community of approximately 21,000 residents. The museum’s ever-changing exhibitions, displays, and events provide an interactive and enjoyable journey through the history of Shetland Islands from their geological beginnings through contemporary social changes. 

Dr Ian Tait, Curator of the Shetland Museum & Archives said: "Our service gives a comprehensive picture of Shetland’s culture and history, but it is difficult for islanders to experience first-hand national and international cultural treasures because the islands are off the metropolitan map. We are delighted to host Holbein’s 'A Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling'. This prestigious loan will give islanders the unique opportunity to see, and enjoy, a masterpiece by a world-class artist, thanks to the kindness of a world-class gallery." 

Brighton Museum & Art Gallery 
10 October 2018 – 6 January 2019 
The final venue in the 2018 Masterpiece Tour is Brighton Museum & Art Gallery. Brighton Museum is home to a significant collection of Dutch and Flemish Old Master paintings, many of which were given to the institution more than a century ago by Henry Willett, a local brewer and one of the museum's founders. The collection also features works from the Antwerp, Flemish, and Netherlandish schools as well as a large offering of Old Master drawings and prints, including works on paper by Dürer and his contemporaries. 

Janita Bagshawe, Director of the Royal Pavilion & Museums, Brighton & Hove said: "We are very proud of our partnership with the National Gallery, enabling us to bring Holbein's beautiful portrait to the city next year, It will be the centrepiece of our main winter exhibition in 2018, complemented by rarely seen Old Master paintings and drawings from our collection. We are delighted to have been chosen and excited to be presenting such a treasured painting in Brighton & Hove.” 

Dr Gabriele Finaldi, Director of the National Gallery, said: “The National Gallery was created for the benefit of the British public, however we appreciate that some people may find it difficult to make the journey to London. We hope that the tour of this great Holbein masterpiece will reach people who have never visited their national collection or haven’t done so for a long time, and that many of those whom we do reach will then feel inspired to visit or revisit the collection. We are pleased to include these three venues in the Masterpiece Tour for 2018 and look forward to seeing the different ways in which this much-loved portrait will be exhibited in each setting.” 

Orlando Rock, Christie’s UK Chairman said: “One of Holbein’s most intimate and compelling portraits, painted during his first trip to London in 1526–8; the National Gallery acquisition of 'A Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling' was negotiated by Christie's in 1994. 

We are delighted therefore to be supporting the National Gallery’s 2018 Masterpiece Tour as we have done in previous years. Christie’s has long championed regional museums and it is rewarding to know that we are enabling those outside London to view our national treasures, and that this sublime and enigmatic Tudor portrait can now be enjoyed by the people of Walsall, Shetland, and Brighton. 

Christie's strongly believes in the role that art and collecting play in the world today and in accessibility to art for everyone, and the Masterpiece Tour fulfils this ambition."