"Ferrarese School" is copy after Scarsellino

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 14 November 2018 a "Ferrarese School, 17th century" Bathing women, estimated at 5,000 to 6,000 Euro.

It is a good copy after a work by Scarsellino (1550-1620), who was indeed a Ferrarese painter. It is now housed in the Minneapolis Institute of Art. The original is larger than the copy for sale (120 by 176 compared to 94 by 130, still a considerable size of course). Copies are usually a lot less valuable of course, but this is a good enough one, and the subject (Naiads) is always popular.

"17th c. Flemish painter" is studio of Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 17 May 2017 a "17th century Flemish painter" Bacchanal, estimated at 9,000 to 12,000 Euro.

It is a version of a work by Thomas Willeboirts Bosschaert (1613-1654), a good painter from the circle of Rubens and Jordaens.

Another version, with a background by Jan Davidsz. de Heem, was sold in 1998 at Christie's for $101,000. The one for sale lacks that extra bit and will be worth less, but the estimate is very reasonnable, probably because they couldn't put a name to it. The work was offered with a similar estimate and description last year at Cambi as well.

UPDATE: sold for 10,000 Euro, I wonder if it will appear again with the right name added.

"17th century school" is close to Cornelis van Poelenburgh

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 17 May 2017 a "School of the 17th century" landscape with nymphs and satyrs, estimated at 3,000 to 3,500 Euro.

It is a work from the School of Cornelis van Poelenburgh (1586-1667), who painted many similar vaguely mythological works with nymphs, satyrs, ... without a real story behind them.

Another (better) version of the same painting is given to van Poelenburgh (on Pinterest) with a date in the 1620s, but I know nothing more about it. The value depends on how close the work is to Van Poelenburgh, I would guess that it is not by him but by his studio or a close follower, and that the estimate is about right.

UPDATE: not sold

"18th century school" is copy after Frans Francken

Cambi aste, from Italy, sells on 28 March 2017 an  "18th century school" Marriage of Cana, estimated at 800 to 1,000 Euro.

It is a slightly modified version of a Frans Francken composition I have already discussed a few times. In this case, the canopy is more elaborate, some classical architectural elements are added, and the garden on the left is more a park landscape than usual. The two cartouches on the right, another new element, have a text but it is badly faded and now is illisible.

The work isn't an original Francken (Cana version from the Hermitage shown) but a later copy, but even so it is a low estimate for this work.

8,000€ "Anonymous" is copy after Rubens

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 15 November 2016 an "Anonymous, 17th century" Susanna and the elders, estimated at 8,000 to 10,000 Euro.

It is a large (116 by 167 cm) reverse copy with some modifications after Rubens, here shown in an engraving by Lucas Vorsterman from 1620. While it is a well-painted work with some nice variations, it still seems a very high valuation for an anonymous copy, and it would surprise me if this gets any bids over 5,000 Euro.

UPDATE: unsold, as expected.

"Four seasons" is actually "Four elements"

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 15 November 2016 a "Cercle of Jan Brueghel II" Allegory of the seasons, estimated at 2,500 to 3,000 Euro.

It actually is an "Allegory of the Elements" (water, air, fire and earth). It is similar to many such works made by Jan Brueghel I (together with Hendrick van Balen) and Jan Brueghel II (together with Jan van Balen).

The closest is a work by a follower of Jan Brueghel I and the Studio of Jan van Balen, which was for sale at Tajan in 1995 (found through RKD). While none of the elements can be said to be directly copied, the overall effect and structure is very similar.

Another version of that work can be found at Stourhead, a National Trust property in Warminster. 

The work is well detailed, not some rushed copy, and should be the work of skilled artists, although probably later than Jan Brueghel I. The third detail above shows "fire", a smithy being worked, and is indicative of how detailed and intriguing some of the background elements are.

Whether it is an original composition or based on another work is not clear, these works were often produced in series (as the above RKD example shows), but I haven't found other versions of this one.  But it seems to me authentic, 17th century, from the circle or even the workshop of Jan Brueghel II.

The work for sale is seriously underestimated in my opinion, getting this for 2,500 Euro would be a steal, and I would estimate it at at least 10,000 Euro.

UPDATE: sold for 32,000 Euro! Seriously underestimated indeed...

Could this 19th c. drawing sold by Cambi be a major Raphael sleeper?

Cambi, from Italy, sold last week an "Italian School, early 19th century" large (100 by 84 cm) drawing "in the Renaissance style", estimated at 400 to 500 Euro.

Instead, it sold for 40,000 Euro.

So, what could be the reason? Well, the sitter and her pose look suspiciously like a Raphael portrait, "La Donna Gravida", from the Palazzo Pitti. The drawing is obviously done by a very skilled artist (and the estimate was very low in any case, even for a random 19th century drawing of this quality). Could this be a real Raphael, completely misjudged by the auction house? It seems quite possible, without having handled the actual work (and not having seen e.g. the back of it), and in that case this is a major find and at 40K a major bargain for whoever spotted it and took the risk.

Perhaps it will reappear in a few months or years time and we will know more then. For now, it is just nice to speculate a bit.

"Dutch Painter, 16th c." seems to be by Vincent Sellaer

Cambi, Italy, sells on 4 May 2016 a "Dutch painter, 16th c." "Female figure with putti", estimated at 6,000 to 8,000 Euro.

It is a better version of a work by Vincent Sellaer (Flemish, not Dutch) sold 10 years ago at Artcurial for nearly 6,000 Euro, and so should be worth more than the estimate (image from artvalue.com). However, the Sellaer market seems to have gone a bit flat lately, with multiple works not selling or selling rather cheap, so perhaps the estimate, despite not recognising the artist, is spot-on anyway. The work for sale is larger than the one sold ten years ago, so if these dimensions are correct, it isn't the same work. Otherwise it has been restored, which was obviously much needed.

UPDATE: not sold, in an auction were the Italian paintings fetched high prices but the others struggled mostly.

"Flemish painter, 17th century" is probably a workshop version by Thomas Willebroirts Bosschaert

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 4 May 2016 a "Flemish painter, 17th century" bacchanale, a very large painting (128 by 214 cmà estimated at 10,000 to 12,000 Euro.

It is a different version of a work by Thomas Willebroirt Bosschaert, nearly equally large but square. That version, which has as a bonus a much better background by Jan Davidsz de Heem, sold for $100,000 at Christie's in 1998.

The version for sale now is very good, but I would guess that it's a workshop version rather than a single-handed Bosschaert work. Looking at it in detail still shows a very attractive work, while most copies of such works fail in that regard.

As such, I would expect it to be worth closer to 20,000 Euro.

UPDATE: while many paintings in this auction seriously surpassed the estimates, this one barely fetched the minimum estimate of 10,000 Euro. It's a strange business.

"Abraham van Dieperbeeck" (sic)? Perhaps, but certainly a copy after Rubens

Cambi sells on 4 May 2016 an "Abraham van Dieperbeeck" Susanna and the Elders, a large (130 by 165cm) canvas estimated at 10,000 to 15,000 Euro.

It is said to be signed ADP (?) and dated 1589 (?), which is hard to reconcile with the dates for Abraham van Diepenbeeck: 1596-1675. One would expect that, if Van Diepenbeeck used a signature, it would be AVD or at a stretch ADB, but ADP is simply weird. I can't find another artist who easily fits that monogram either though.

The painting is an adapted copy after a famous Rubens painting of Susannah, best known from an engraving by Lucas Vorsterman but also by some copies.

This version is good in the woman and the right of the two elder men, but the other man, the fountain, and the background, are a bit strange and look to modern to me. I wouldn't dare spend 10,000 Euro on it, certainly not without more information (like close-ups of the monogram and date).

"Flemish school" is copy after Adriaen Van der Werff

Cambi, from Italy, sells on 9 March 2016 a "Flemish School, 18th century" scene with boys and girls, estimated at 1,200 to 1,600 Euro.

It is a copy after a painting from the Uffizi by Adriaen Van der Werff, "Playing children and Diogenes searching for an honest man" from about 1680 (a more popular variation on this work can be found in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich). The above image is from the RKD.

The copy is decent in the main figures, and very badly executed in the background figures. It is not by Van der Werff, and probably not by his son Pieter who made some copies of these works. Still, it is an entertaining work (the way the cat look at the bird!), and should fetch the estimate. But it's Dutch, not Flemish...

Two copies after Teniers' Temptation of Saint Anthony

In the Louvre one can see the "Temptation of Saint Anthony" by David Teniers II. It was one of his most popular paintings, and was often copied already during the 17th century, e.g. one version sold in 2015 at Lempertz for 10,000 Euro, which I discussed here.

Now there are two copies for sale, both reversed and with comparable estimates.

Lamas Bolaño, from Spain, sells on 14 March 2016 a "Flemish School, 17th century, circle of Teniers" version estimated at 800 Euro. It is a rather crude copy, lacking the refinement of the original.

Much better is the version for sale at Cambi, Italian auction house, on 9 March 2016: "Flemish School, 17th century" (no mention of Teniers here), estimated at 800 to 1,000 Euro, so the same as the Spanish version. It's twice as large, and much thinner painted (the structure of the canvas is quite visible through the painting), but it is a much more attractive version. It's not by Teniers of course, and seems to be after an engraving of the work, but value for money it is way better than the Bolaño version, which is boring. This one is lively, done by a very competent artist, with an eye for detail and colouring. It should be worth closer to 2,000 Euro probably, while the Spanish one should struggle to get the bottom estimate.

It is interesting to see how such popular works spread across the whole continent throughout the centuries (and often soon after they were made); while every country or even region had its own specific style, they weren't isolated from the remainder of European art.