Melchior d'Hondecoeter (Utrecht 1636-1695 Amsterdam)

A drawing of the same composition, which includes more chicks and birds in the background, is in the British Museum (Inv. 1861,0810.23). Another drawing with the same peacock and poultry, but set in a landscape with architectural elements and other birds, is in the Stiftung Weimarer Klassik und Kunstsammlungen, Weimar (Inv. 5104). Peter Schatborn has suggested that the present drawing is the first version, followed by the British Museum sheet and finally the Weimar drawing.

We are grateful to Peter Schatborn for his assistance in cataloguing this drawing and for confirming the attribution to d'Hondecoeter on the basis of a digital photograph.