Anthony Palamedesz, Palamedesz Guardhouse, 1630, Oil on Board

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Anthony Palamedesz (Delft 1601 - Amsterdam 1673) - signed and dated
Guards with Trumpeter
Oil on panel (42 x 54 … Read more Anthony Palamedesz (Delft 1601 - Amsterdam 1673) - signed and dated
Guards with Trumpeter
Oil on panel (42 x 54 cm. - Framed 55 x 67 cm.)

Signature: lower left 'f Palamedes 163\.'
Authentication: Expertise by Dr. R. Colace

Provenance: Sotheby's, Amsterdam, November 14, 2006,
The scene depicted in the painting is part of a highly prized pictorial subject during the Golden Age of Flemish art, which in Dutch inventories is called Kortegaertges, from the French term corps de garde, meaning guardhouse. These are lively and pictorial scenes of Soldiers and city guards immortalized in their daily activities.

In our case, the work is a wonderful composition attributed to Anthony Palamedesz (Delft 1601 - Amsterdam 1673), signed and accompanied by a study by art historian Raffaella Colace, further confirming this attribution.

Unlike similar depictions by contemporary artists, Palamedesz's paintings are always imbued with great elegance. They do not depict sutlers and prostitutes, but elegant women, likely officers' wives, with their children, whom they care for.

In our beautiful painting, where two soldiers are immortalized in a moment of contemplation and repose, the first is seated with a baton in his hand and waiting for a servant to bring him a drum, while the other, standing, is already busy playing a trumpet.

It should be remembered that in 17th-century Netherlands, armies used trumpet players (trompetters) and drummers (trommelslagers) for their military music, providing rhythm during marches, signals, and announcements, and thus played a fundamental role in military tradition.

In representations like this, didactic themes can also be identified: soldiers depicted at rest often engage in pastimes associated with moral weakness, such as playing cards, smoking, and drinking wine.

Palamedesz modified this standard, specifically introducing a further figure key to the painting's message: a woman holding a child. He was the only painter to depict women in this type of representation as mothers, rather than as women of easy virtue.

The painter therefore wanted to contrast the figures of the soldier-warrior, and therefore the archetype of the male world, with the female archetype personified by the mother. The worlds of war and peace also intersect in his works: the trumpeter calling for military duty is a figure of Mars, while the unsuspecting woman caring for her child is a figure of Venus, who tames it.

Anthonie Palamedesz addressed this theme countless times and in many variations, some of which are now in the most prestigious international collections. Our painting can be compared, especially in terms of the subject, with the painting in the National Museum of Krakow, Poland (inv. no. DMNKCz 122) (link: https://rkd.nl/images/211456).

In particular, the figure of the soldier playing the trumpet is almost a signature element of his works, which we find replicated on numerous occasions. These include, for example, the painting titled "Interior of a Guard Room with an Officer Playing the Trumpet in Front of a Mother and Child" (Christie's, London, April 28, 2006, Lot 49, oil on panel, 46.7 x 62.9 cm), which depicts the same player This piece is attributed to the mentioned designer/maker. It has no attribution mark and no
official proof of authenticity,
however it is well documented in design history. I take full responsibility for any authenticity



issues arising from misattribution See less