Interesting "Garden of Eden" at Mercier

Mercier, France, sells on 16 October 2016 a "Flemish School, 17th century, circle of Nicolas de Bruyn" Garden of Eden, estimated at 20,000 to 30,000 Euro.

They correctly describe it as being related to De Bruyn (and the central figures taken from a very popular engraving of Adam and Eve by Giovanni Battista Paggi), The engraving by De Bruyn (image from the Rijksmuseum) is an Orpheus charming the animals, but by replacing the central figures it became a Garden of Eden (I really love the way these Flemish painters turned the same composition into different subjecs by changing the absolute minimum of elements, see also some posts about the Franckens).

But they fail to mention the quasi-identical but somewhat larger version of this work in the (for them nearby) Museum of Flanders in Cassel (in the historically Flemish speaking parts in the North of France). The work for sale is 88 by 112cm, the Cassel version is 103 by 125cm. The style of the works is very unusual for Flemish paintings, quite distinct from most other artists working at the time.

Oh, and the central figures aren't the only thing changed between the engraving of De Bruyn and the painting for sale. Many smaller details also are changed, but this one is the most amusing probably. Apparently not everything is allowed in the Garden of Eden!

The style of the work for sale (and the work in Cassel) is reminiscent of the style of Jacob Savery, but as he already died in 1603, he can't be responsible for these works. His son Jacob Savery II lived until ca. 1651, so perhaps we should be looking in that direction? The above "Ark" is given to both Savery I and Savery II, depending on the page you visit...

UPDATE: sold for 16,500 Euro. 

UPDATE 2: and now for sale at Dorotheum, on 17 October 2017, with an estimate of 20,000 to 30,000 Euro. They do point to the Cassel work, but not to Nicolaes de Bruyn. They also namedrop Jacob Bouttats. Interesting to see whether it will sell for more than last year (as is usual nowadays, no provenance is given when a work has been on sale so recently).  

UPDATE 3: sold for 186,000 Euro!!!