PEETER NEEFS the Elder. (c. 1578 Antwerp c. 1656/1661) Nocturnal... Lot 3024

PEETER NEEFS the Elder. (c. 1578 Antwerp c. 1656/1661) Nocturnal interior of a Gothic cathedral. 1625. Oil on copper. Signed and dated on the right side of the pillar: Peeter Neefs 1625. 26.7 × 33.1 cm. Provenance: - Blake Collection, Ireland (wax seal on verso). - Private collection, North Yorkshire. - European collection. This nocturnal depiction shows the monumental Gothic interior of a five-bay cathedral, freely modeled on the interior of the late Gothic cathedral of Antwerp. This monumental building was considered the most beautiful church in the southern Netherlands and was a constant inspiration for Antwerp's architectural painters. Neefs, who mastered this genre to perfection, makes every architectural element visible to the viewer. All strata of the society of the time have their place in the church interior: nobility, beggars, priests and peasants; all are united in this ecclesiastical universality. These high-quality staffage figures were probably painted by Frans Francken the Younger (1581-1642), who often collaborated with Neefs. Among other versions, the composition is comparable to Neef's Church Interior with Elegant Figures from the collection of the Victoria & Albert Museum in London (inv. no. 854-1894, c. 1640, oil on wood, 64 × 46.6 cm; see Bernard G. Maillet: Intérieurs d'églises. La peinture architecturale des écoles du nord (1580-1720), Paris 2012, cat. no. M-0672). These objects marked with * (asterisk) are fully subject to VAT, i.e. for these objects VAT will be charged on the hammer price plus buyer's premium. Buyers who present a legally stamped export declaration will be refunded the VAT.