Dirck Hals (Dutch, 1591-1656)

The present painting was part of the renowned collection of Viktor and Helene Mautner Markhof. Viktor Mautner Markhof (1865-1919) belonged to a great industrialist dynasty founded by his grandfather Adolf Ignaz Mautner, who became leaseholder of the Brewery St. Marx in 1840 and earned great acclaim for the industrial production of compressed yeast in the years that followed. Adolf Mautner was raised to nobility with the title 'Ritter von Markhof' in 1872. His sons Karl Ferdinand (1834-1896) and Georg Heinrich (1840-1904) expanded the company making it the third-largest brewery in Europe. Under Viktor, son of Karl Ferdinand, the brewery was fused with the Dreher-Meichel breweries into Vereinigte Brauereien Schwechat, St. Marx, Simmering AG. The family has continued to prosper and are to this day known as patrons of the arts and benefactors to the public.