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60
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Adrien Van STALBEMT (Antwerp, 1580 – 1662) and Peter GYSELS …
See original version (French)
60
-
Adrien Van STALBEMT (Antwerp, 1580 – 1662) and Peter GYSELS …
See original version (French)
Estimate €400,000 - €600,000
Voluntary lot
Description
Adrien Van STALBEMT (Antwerp, 1580 – 1662) and Peter GYSELS (Antwerp, 1621 – 1690)
Allegory of the Five Senses
Oak panel, inlaid
Height: 74 cm
Width: 107 cm
Inscribed on the harpsichord: ‘Andreas.Ruckers. Me. Fecit. Antwerpia Aø 1619’. On the reverse, a label specifies the painting’s provenance. Carved and gilded wooden frame, 17th-century French work.
Bibliography:
K. Ertz and C. Ertz, Adrien Van Stalbemt, Luca Verlag 2018, no. 129, reproduced on p. 312
Provenance:
Commissioned around 1650 by Angibert Van den Berg, born in 1608 in Antwerp. Brought to Orléans in 1652 by his son Georges (1633–1684). A prominent sugar merchant, Georges Van den Berg was a scholar and a great collector of Flemish furniture, books and works of art, hence the presence of the harpsichord, signed by Ruckers. The Van den Berg collection remained with his descendants in Orléans until the closure of the sugar trading house during the Continental Blockade of 1810. Our painting remained in the family through successive generations until it was sold at public auction in 2003 (auction in Paris, Tajan auction house, 25 June 2003, lot 20; attributed to Adrien Van Stalbemt and Jan Van Kessel).
This allegorical painting evokes the pleasures of the senses. Each woman embodies a sense: sight is symbolised by the telescope, hearing by the lute, smell by the flowers, taste by the dishes and fruit, and touch by the woman, who is being bitten on the heel by a small monkey. She leans on the table, the apparent centre of the scene, whose movement and disorder emphasise the playful and lively nature of the depiction. The figure representing Touch seems to be causing the table to tip over. This movement introduces an unexpected tension into the painting’s orderly appearance: as if, behind the celebration of the five senses, the established order could suddenly be overturned.
From the Renaissance onwards, and particularly in the 17th and 18th centuries, cabinets of curiosities flourished in princely courts and amongst European collectors. These collections brought together rare or unusual objects from the three kingdoms of nature—mineral, plant and animal—as well as works of art and man-made objects. They bear witness to a desire to gather, observe and understand the world, but also to inspire wonder.
This culture of collecting is closely linked to the representation of the five senses, a theme particularly prominent in Flemish painting. The senses are, in fact, the primary means by which human beings engage with the world around them: sight, hearing, smell, taste and touch. Artists generally depict them through easily recognisable objects: musical instruments for hearing, flowers for smell, fruit and food for taste, mirrors or spectacles for sight, and physical contact or animals for touch.
Our depiction highlights this symbolism, which takes the form of a banquet scene where the senses are associated with abundance, pleasure and curiosity. The numerous objects (instruments, flowers, fruit, crockery, animals) can be seen as signs of a world to be observed and discovered. The monkey, which makes an almost comical appearance by biting the young woman’s foot, introduces a playful element and serves as a reminder that touch can be a source of pleasure, surprise and pain all at once. Thus, the allegory of the five senses forms part of a visual culture in which collecting, observing and experimenting all stem from the same desire to understand and represent the diversity of the world.
Our painting stands out as a rare example of a collaboration between two artists, Adrien Van Stalbemt and Peter Gysels. The exquisite still life in the lower right-hand corner, the flowers and the objects placed on the table are characteristic of Gysels’ meticulous style; he is best known for his lively landscapes, and here he achieves a level of perfection rarely equalled. The elegant female figures, with their porcelain-like complexions, are the work of Adriaen van Stalbempt, bearing witness both to his work as a figure painter and as a landscape painter – a fine example of which can be found in the background of our painting (see D. Coeckelberghs, ‘Adriaen van Stalbempt als figurenschilder’, in *Oud-Holland*, 1981, pp. 10–12).
On the left, we see a rare depiction of a double-manual harpsichord, bearing the inscription: ‘Andreas Ruckers me fecit Antverpiae 1619’.
The inner surfaces of the instrument are lined with decorative paper featuring an arabesque pattern, as used by Andreas Ruckers (a type 6 and a second type very similar to type 13 in Grant O’Brien’s book on the Ruckers). The outer sides of the harpsichord feature a marble-effect decoration typical of Flemish design, whilst the inside of the lid bears a painting whose motif, though difficult to make out, is likely to depict a musical theme.
A harpsichord by Andreas Ruckers dating from 1627, held at the Gemeentemuseum in The Hague, possesses similar characteristics.
Donald Boalch’s book mentions a double-manual instrument by Andreas Ruckers dating from 1619, the current whereabouts of which are unknown.
The Brussels Museum has in its collections a panel bearing the same inscription as that on our harpsichord. We can draw a connection with the instrument in Jan Brueghel’s ‘Allegory of Hearing’, which Mr O’Brien has identified as being one of Ruckers’ instruments.
In the mid-16th century, Antwerp became the principal economic centre of the North, and international trade began to export the artistic output that had become established there. Indeed, harpsichord makers, painters and sculptors were required to be members of the Guild of Saint Luke in order to practise their trade. It was not until a decree dated 1579 that harpsichord makers were recognised as craftsmen and granted the right to make the cases for their harpsichords themselves, which explains why Flemish harpsichord makers belonged to the same guild as sculptors.
In 1579, Hans Ruckers, one of the most famous harpsichord makers, was admitted to the Guild of Saint Luke. Born in Mechelen, he settled in Antwerp around 1550. On 25 June 1575, he married Adriana Knaeps at Our Lady’s Church in Antwerp. He died between July 1597 and December 1598. Two of Hans Ruckers’ ten children took over his trade and continued to build and teach the harpsichord in the Jodenstraat in Antwerp (a street situated 200 metres from the house of Peter Paul Rubens). Johann (baptised in Antwerp on 15 July 1578 and died in Antwerp on 19 September 1642) joined the Guild of Saint Luke in 1611. From 1615 onwards, he maintained the harpsichords and spinet pianos at the court in Brussels, as well as the organs at St James’s Church and the Jacobs’kerk. From 1616 until
his death, he was the Archduke’s harpsichord and organ maker in Brussels.
In 1623, along with Peter Paul Rubens, Jan Brueghel, Robrecht de Nole and Rombout Rasiers, he was exempted from keeping watch on the city ramparts, owing to his service at court. On the death of his mother in March 1604, he inherited the workshop and the family home as the eldest son. He married Maria Waerlaent that same year, and they had two daughters, Maria and Elizabeth. In 1636, his daughter Maria received a substantial dowry upon her marriage to the painter Snayers. His studio was taken over by his nephew Johannes Couchet.
Andreas I, known as the Elder (baptised in Antwerp on 30 August 1579 and died in Antwerp between June 1651 and March 1653), joined the Guild of Saint Luke in 1610. On 25 July 1605, he married Catharina de Vries, sister-in-law of the painter Jacob Jordaens. From this marriage came a son, Andreas II, and a daughter, Anna, who would become the second wife of Johann Davidz de Heem, one of Antwerp’s most famous painters of flowers and still lifes. Andreas worked with his brother in 1604, and in 1605 he began signing his own works. In 1616, he lived near the cathedral cemetery, in Huidevetterstraat (Tanners’ Street).
The Ruckers’ instruments are characterised by a high standard of craftsmanship unique to them, as confirmed by the Encyclopédie: ‘The finest harpsichords we have had to date in terms of the beauty of their harmony are those of the three RUCKERS and of Jean COUCHET, who, all having been based in Antwerp in the past century, produced an immense number of harpsichords, of which there are a very large number of originals in Paris”.
Among the royal harpsichords at Versailles (1780 Inventory), we note one harpsichord decorated with chinoiserie motifs and another featuring figures against a yellow background. Both are by the Ruckers family.
The note concerning the Ruckers was compiled using information provided by Mrs Odile Vérot in 1993.
We would like to thank Mr Fred Meijer for suggesting Peter Gysels as the artist of the still life.
Expert: Stéphane Pinta, Turquin firm (viewable by appointment at the expert’s office)
See original version (French)
Auto-translation. Refer to original language for legal validity.
Pictures modified on 10/14/2026 at 7:30 PM
Lot description modified on 10/15/2026 at 7:55 PM
Pictures credits: Contact the Auction House
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