Lot 194: Saint Anthony and Saint Paul the Hermit

Carl Borromaus Andreas Ruthart (Danzig 1630-c.1703 L'Aquila) Saint Anthony and Saint Paul the Hermit oil on canvas 20¾ x 29½ in. (52.8 x 75 cm.)

Ruthart's reputation is founded on his paintings of wild animals, often shown fighting in landscapes, and he is virtually unknown as a figurative painter. In the present work the deer are relegated to the background while the distinctive rocky outcrop, of the type that forms the backdrop to many of his animal pictures, provides a stage for the two hermit saints. Both the theme and the prominence given to the outcrop may well be indebted to Salvator Rosa, whose picture of the same subject (Denis Mahon collection) may have been known to Ruthart. He visited Rome briefly in 1659 and the present work may have been painted shortly afterwards, early in the artist's career.