(Antwerp circa 1540–1619 Bologna)
The Virgin and Child with the Infant Saint John the Baptist surrounded by angels,
oil on panel, 126 x 96 cm, framed

We are grateful to Klaus Ertz for confirming the attribution of the present painting to Denijs Calvaert (written communication, August 2019).

Klaus Ertz writes about the present painting: ‘Having thoroughly analysed the picture in question, I am convinced that it was produced by the Flemish painter Denys Calvaert in Bologna in the second decade of the seventeenth century, influenced by Correggio as well as his masters Prospero Fontana and Lorenzo Sabattini. The painting can be said to be in very good condition […]. The soft colours typical of Calvaert and the delicate features of the figures – mostly shown in profile or three-quarter profile – are reminiscent of the German Johann Rottenhammer and the Italian Guido Reni, whose teacher he had been for several years. Unlike the Carracci School, his application of paint stands out for its enamel-like and particularly ‘Flemish’ smoothness.’ 

Ertz dates the present painting to the years around 1610 and compares it to several other works by Calvaert so to corroborate his attribution:

(1) The Holy Family with the Infant Baptist and an angel (signed and dated 1579, sale, Sotheby’s, New York, 31 January 2018);
(2) The Virgin and Child with the Infant Baptist, Saint Catherine, and Saint Dominic (signed and dated 1592, sale, Sotheby’s, London, 6 December 2017, lot 19);
(3) The Adoration of the Magi (signed and dated 1612, sale, Lempertz, Cologne, lot 1018)