Pierre BRUEGHEL II (Brussels, 1564 - Antwerp, 1636) - Lot 24

Pierre BRUEGHEL II (Brussels, 1564 - Antwerp, 1636) The payment of the tithe Oak panel, one board, reinforced Height : 60 cm Width: 95.4 cm Provenance : - Fernand Jacobs Collection (1886-1971) in Antwerp and by descent. Bibliography : Georges Marlier, Pierre Brueghel le Jeune, Bruxelles, éditions Robert Finck, 1969, p.435, n°5 (not reproduced) Klaus Ertz, Pieter Brueghel der Jüngere (1564-1637/38), die Gemälde mit kritischem Oeuvrekatalog, Lingen, 2000, T.I, p.515, Cat. F515 (not reproduced)Pieter Brueghel II, eldest son of Peter Breughel the Elder, is the brother of Jan Breughel, known as de velours. Orphaned at an early age, the children were taken in by their grandmother, Mayken Verhulst widow of Pieter Coecke van Aelst. Later, the artist completed his training with the landscape painter Gillis van Coninxloo. He was admitted to the Antwerp Guild of Saint Luke, and listed as an independent master in the register for the years 1584-1585. There are some thirty autograph versions, signed or unsigned, of this famous composition by Pierre Breughel II, painted between 1609 and 1621. Ours can be dated be dated before 1615. The treatment of the subject underwent a slight evolution from 1618 onwards. The first series shows the character furthest to the left with gray or light-colored sleeves, and is found on works before 1617. After this date, a dark cloth covers the back wall, and the left-hand character's sleeves turn red. has his sleeves turned red. Entitled "The Payment of Tithes", or sometimes "The Peasants' Advocate", the painting's subject is the subject of much debate. Yet the main figure behind the desk, always depicted with a prominent chin chin, wears an ecclesiastical cap that identifies him as a man of the cloth. He's certainly collect tithes, a tax used to build churches, publish the Scriptures and, more generally missionary work. This tax, introduced by the Carolingians, was paid by all the people, but the poorer but the poorest populations found it difficult to pay a tax deemed too heavy and unfair. The tax collector is assisted in his task by a man standing to his left and a clerk busy scribbling behind a counter on the other side of the room. To his right, another consults the calendar on the wall. on the wall. We notice that the months of the almanac are written in French, which is logical since this language was officially used in the legal profession. was officially used in the legal profession and by the Spanish administration in Flanders at the time. at that time. The other protagonists are peasants: there are four in the foreground, one of whom is waiting for the basket of eggs and presents basket of eggs and presents that his wife is pulling from a sack. To the left, a man hesitantly slips through the ajar door door behind the man timidly standing at the entrance. The room is a mess and a heap of papers. reign in the room. Breughel is probably criticizing the Spanish occupation; the tax collector, with his prominent forehead and receding chin, bears a clear resemblance to the Habsburgs Habsburgs (Philip II in particular, who died in 1598), whose domination of Flanders extended from 1556 to 1713. The peasants, timid and frightened, underwent the dictates of the occupier and came, sheepishly, to pay taxes tax with only their riches - chickens, eggs, grapes? Some historians have suggested that the painter was inspired by a prototype by Parisian painter Nicolas Baullery, although no such original original of this type. We would like to thank Dr. Ursula Härting for confirming the attribution of this painting to Pieter II BRUEGHEL by direct examination of the work. direct examination of the work. A certificate from Dr. Ursula Härting, sent by e-mail on March 1, 2024, will be given to the buyer.