Lot 95A: Johannes Antiquus (Groningen 1702-1750)

A woman at a fountain by a ruined temple, the Farnese Hercules in the background; and A shepherd under a ruined arch with the Farnese Hercules black chalk, pen and grey ink, grey wash 141/4 x 91/2 in. (362 x 238 mm.) (2) NOTES Th attribution to Johannes Antiquus was kindly suggested by Robert te Rijdt, who compared the pair of drawings to a sheet in the Groningen Museum (J. Bolten, Nederlandse en Vlamse tekeningen uit zeventiende en achttiende eeuw, exhib. cat., Groningen, Stichting Groninger Museum, 1965, no. 14). Another drawing of this type by Antiquus is in Otterloo (H.Th. Colenbrander and J. van der Waals, Tekeningen van de 16de to de 19de eeuw, exhib. cat., Otterloo, Rijksmuseum Kr”ller-Mller, 1981, no. 7). Antiquus was one of the few Dutch 18th Century artists who lived in Italy. He first left Amsterdam for Paris stopping in Rouen and then walked back to Amsterdam. Later he joined his brother Lambertus in Genoa, where he stayed for eight months, and from there went via Livorno and Pisa to Florence. He lived six years in Florence working for the Grand Duke of Tuscany. He visited Rome at least four times. In 1737 he travelled to Bologna, Venice, Padua, Mantua, Milan and Turin before returning to Rouen from where he joined his brother in Amsterdam. We are grateful to Robert te Rijdt for his help in cataloguing this lot.