Monday 19 October 2015

French School portrait is by or after Justus van Egmont

Hôtel des Ventes du Tarn, in Albi, France, sells on 24 October 2015 a "French School, late 17th century" portrait of Duc Daillon du Lude, Bishop of Albi, estimated at only 150 to 200 Euro.

It is not clear how they knew who the sitter was, but that made it possible for me to find the artist of this portrait (or at least of the original, if this is a copy).

The Bibliothèque de Lille has an engraving of the same sitter, and it turns out to be the same portrait, but in reverse (as one would expect from the original painting). Luckily, it bears the name of the painter, Justus van Egmont (1602-1674), a court painter in France.

The painting for sale is good, but the engraving looks to be more detailed, less flat than the painting: either the painting is a decent copy, or some details are lost (through the ages or under dirt and varnish). Even as a copy, it should be worth more than the estimate. As an original, even if one of the more boring Van Egmonts, it should fetch a few thousand euros at least, with the chance that cleaning or restoration will reveal a much finer picture.

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