HENDRICK VERSCHURING (Gorkum 1627 – 1690 Dordrecht)
Hendrick Verschuring (Gorkum 1627 – 1690 Dordrecht)
An Italianate Courtyard with a Lady on a Horse, the Rape of the Sabine Women in the Background
Oil on canvas, 132 x 106 cm (52 x 41.7 inch)
Provenance
~ Anonymous sale, Mak, Amsterdam, 14 October 1918, lot 117
~ Private collection, The Netherlands
***
Hendrick Verschuring was born in Gorkum in 1627, the son of Willem Verschuring, a captain in the service of the Dutch Republic and ‘hopman’ or flag bearer of the ‘schutterij’ civic militia.1 At the young age of eight, he was sent to learn drawing from the portrait painter Dirck Govertsz, as was recorded by the artists’ biographer Arnold Houbraken. Afterwards, aged thirteen, he entered the studio of Jan Both, where he remained for six years. Both’s Italianate landscapes influenced him greatly and encouraged Verschuring to embark on a journey to Italy, recording his impressions in drawings. Verschuring remained in Italy for a long time, more than a decade according to some authors, but in actuality probably around five years, and upon his return North painted Mediterranean scenes with figures and horses.
The present monumental canvas is the largest known work by Verschuring, whose paintings are normally of more modest proportions. It must have been an important commission and among the artist’s most notable works. A signed drawing by Verschuring of the same composition, either a finished preparatory design or a ricordo of the present painting was sold at Christie’s, Paris, 21 November 2007 (fig.).2
