Martin Ryckaert (Antwerp 1587-1631)

In 1611 Martin Ryckaert registered at the Guild of Saint Luke in Antwerp shortly after returning there from Italy, where he was known to have been sketching en plein air from c.1605-1610. Works from this period and later attest to the influence of Paul Bril, whose prints of Roman-style landscapes were widely disseminated in Antwerp at this time. Also evident in this painting is the inspiration he took from the paintings of Jan Breughel the elder, most notably in the placement, style and grouping of the figures in the landscape.

We are grateful to Luuk Pijl for confirming the attribution on the basis of a photograph and dating this work to the 1620s.