Galerie Moderne, from Belgium, sells on 11 November 2019 a large (132 by 225 cm!) "Anonymous, 17th century" Ark of Noach, estimated at 7,000 to 10,000 Euro.
While the size and age certainly explain the estimation, the quality is less than one would expect in such a large painting. Usually, only the good painters painted large paintings, as the people who could afford such huge paintings and had the room to hang them went for established names, not for some amateur. Perhaps it was intended for a provincial church, which had the space to hang such large work, but not the means or knowledge to go for a better painter.
This one is a copy after an engraving from ca. 1680, designed by Jan Van Londerseele (about whom very little is known) and published as part of an illustrated Bible by the Visscher family (probably Nicolaes II Visscher). The engraving was an impressive 38 by 52 cm, but the painting expands it considerably still (information on the engraving, and image, from the
Rijksmuseum). The composition is nearly the same, except some small differences (e.g. the right-most woman is placed slightly different, and the work is made larger next to her); but the painting is not good enough to be the original of the engraving (which would have made it a good find of course), even though it is reversed compared to the printed work. It may be that it is based directly on the original, assuming that this was first a painting and not immediately a drawing made especially for the engraving.
As it stands, it will have trouble fetching the estimate, as it is simply too big for many houses, and not good enough to attract many bidders.
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