(Antwerp 1601–1678) and (Mechelen 1600–1652 Antwerp)
The Rest on the Flight into Egypt,
oil on canvas, 34.5 x 49 cm, framed

Provenance:
Klaus Ertz (1945–2023) until 1993;
sale, Dorotheum, Vienna, 2 June 1993, lot 99;
where acquired by the present owner

The present painting is accompanied by a copy of a certificate by the late Klaus Ertz, dated 15 January 1993. He attributes the landscape, the birds and the flowers to Jan Brueghel II and the staffage to Pieter van Avont. According to the author, the painting was created in Antwerp around 1640.

The present work depicts the Holy Family sheltered under a group of trees at the edge of the forest. Amongst them are two angels, whilst one is turned toward the rose bush on the right, the other introduces John the Baptist and the Christ child. The Virgin and Joseph are watching the scene peacefully. On the left of the composition, there is an extensive valley landscape, dominated by different tones of green.

In the oeuvre of work of Pieter van Avont, the motif of angels paying tribute to the Holy Family often occurs in different forms. Ertz compares the present painting to several compositions. Amongst them a work by the two artists of the present painting, in which the seated Virgin feeds the Child, lying in her lap. Situated beside them are John the Baptist and Joseph, whilst a group of angels are playing with the Lamb and others offering flowers. This work is preserved in the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna (inv. no. 1683). A collaboration between the two artists, that has not been mentioned by Ertz, is listed in the RKD database under no. 220370. The work shows numerous similarities with the present composition and depicts the Holy Family and John the Baptist along the banks of a small river with an angel picking flowers on the right.

Both Jan Brueghel II and Pieter van Avont collaborated with many of their contemporaries, which testifies to their successful careers in the city of Antwerp.