Wise and foolish virgins

At Vanderkindere, they sell on 21 April 2015 a painting of "Ladies of class playing music", attributed to Frans Francken II and estimated at 3,000 to 5,000 Euro. UPDATE: as predicted below, sold for $5,000.

While it looks to be from the Francken "stable", it doesn't look good enough to be truly by Frans Francken. More on the attribution follows below though. Let's first start with the subject. This painting is actually a depiction of the "Parable of the Wise and Foolish Virgins" (or "parable of the 10 virgins" as it is also known), comparable to e.g. the same subject treated by Hieronymus Francken and now in the Hermitage.

On the left (in the painting now for sale), we have the 5 wise virgins (who get the least attention, officially because the painting is a warning against the actions of the foolish virgins, in reality because showing girls having fun is much more saleable than girls being good...); they are praying, working, reading, ... in short: behaving themselves. This is reflected by the pious paintings above them, including a Sacred Heart and a Jesus.

The foolish virgins, on the other hand, do all kinds of outrageous things: playing music, dancing, showing their ankles, drinking, playing cards, ... and neglecting their work (on the table, with the large peacock (subtle...) is also something that looks like a birthday cake, but is probably a lace-making tool which isn't used, as that would be a proper activity for a lady). The difference between the two groups is also reflected in their clothing and hairdo: much more luxury, colour, exposed flesh; vanity (or joie-de-vivre).

These sins, and the dangers of such lifestyle, are also reflected in the paintings above them: a burning city, reminiscent of some paintings by Jan Mandyn or the Dulle Griet by Breughel; a nude woman, looking like a Lucretia; a "Lot and his daughters" (pictured); and a carnival scene. The painting is filled with lots more symbols, some of it clear, like the oysters on the stool in the front, some of it more obscure.

ATTRIBUTION

The work is attributed to Frans Francken II, which is understandable considering the subject and style of painting (though not the quality). But it turns out to be a copy of a work by another Antwerp painter of around 1620; either Pieter Lisaert III (1574-1604/1620), his son Pieter Lisaert IV (1595-1630) or Philips Lisaert II (1590-1632), son of Abraham Lisaert (brother of Pieter III). The painting certainly isn't good enough to be the work of Pieter III, but either of the other two may be the painter: we simply don't have enough material to compare with.

The above was offered for sale as by Pieter IV at Dorotheum in Vienna in 2014. Estimated at $34,000, it didn't sell. The composition is nearly identical to the one for sale, apart from the paintings above the foolish virgins, which are a lot tamer (two ruins, and an old man and a nude woman, not certain which story is depicted). The overall painting here is better, but some aspects (like the greenish dress with the white crosses, on the right) are better in the one for sale.

Another, apparently better version, but for which I have only the above small image, was sold at Tajan in 1996 for 34,000 Euro. It is somewhat more remote from the one for sale, but obviously still the same basic composition.

But wait... Another variation of the same painting is kept in the Statens Museum for Kunst in Kopenhagen. But it is attributed to Hieronymus Francken II, and dated 1593-1623. So the date stays roughly the same, but we are back to Francken. It is clearly superior to the one for sale of course, no matter who painted it. The paintings above the foolish virgins are remarkable though; suddenly we again have the nude woman (left one here, second to left on the one for sale), and another version of Lot and his daughters. Other things, like the table with food, are completely different though, even though it still includes the empty lacemaking tool.

So, does all this make any difference to the estimation? Probably not, it will not be worth much more than 5,000 Euro, but it is an interesting picture, both iconographically as artistically, and much more fun than most copies after old masters.