Lot 74: Johannes Leemans , The Hague 1633 - 1688 A trompe l'oeil hunting still life with a rifle, a bird in a cage, a hunting horn, a bird-whistle and other hunting gear oil on canvas

signed and indistinctly dated centre right: J. Leemans / 16.2 oil on canvas

measurements note 110.2 by 124.3 cm.

THE PROPERTY OF A GENTLEMAN
The The Hague painter Johannes Leemans specialized in trompe l'oeil hunting still lifes, a genre that gained popularity in that city in the mid-17th Century, possibly due to its forest surroundings which were popular hunting-grounds.υ1

While Leemans' paintings show little change over the years, his compositions are almost never identical and inform us in great detail on hunting gear in the 17th Century. Although the third digit in the date of this work is illegible, all his still lifes can be dated in the period between 1664 and 1686. 1. See E. Buijsen, Haagse Schilders in de Gouden Eeuw, The Hague 1998, p. 37.