Attributed to Hendrik Martenszoon Lot n° 12

Attributed to Hendrik Martenszoon "Sorgh" (Zorg) (Rotterdam, 1621 - 1682) "The Seven Acts of Mercy" Oil on panel. Cradled in the centre.  Has a collection number. 59 x 83.5cm. "The Seven Acts of Mercy by Zoorg 1621 to 1682" is handwritten on the back of the panel, alluding to the authorship, as well as the title of the work, the seven acts of mercy, which are reflected in the painting. The painting clearly seems to be inspired by that by Frans Francken II "The Seven Acts of Mercy", painted between 1613 and 1617 and kept in the Hermitage Museum. Sorgh was a student of David Teniers the Younger and Willem Pieterszoon Buytewech. In 1636 or 1637 he became a master in the Guild of Saint Luke and in 1659 head of the Guild of Saint Luke in Rotterdam. This painting apparently represents a traditional scene in a Dutch village, but it contains much more than meets the eye. The various groups of figures that make up the scene symbolically illustrate the seven corporal acts of mercy: feeding the hungry, giving drink to the thirsty, clothing the naked, sheltering travellers, visiting the sick, visiting the imprisoned, and burying the dead.