(Brussels 1636–1723)
A Group Portrait of a Family with a royal Prince in the courtyard of a Palace,
signed and dated lower centre: L. Volders fecit 1666,
oil on canvas, 170 x 225 cm, framed

Provenance:
commissioned by Lancelot Lefèvre, Paris;
thence by descent to collection M. A. Lefèvre, Paris;
sale, Lefèvre Collection, Paris, 17th-20th April, 1882, lot 95;
sale, Christie’s, Bischoffsheim Sale, 7th May, 1926, lot 107 (bt. by Willis for 400 gns);
sale, Sotheby’s, London, 16th April 1980, lot 75;
with Thomas Agnews, London, 17th June 1980;
bought from the above by the previous owner, 1984;
Finchcock Musical Museum, Kent, UK

The present painting was engraved by Edmund Joseph Ramus (1822-1890) as La partie de musique, published in ‘L’Art’, circa 1880-1883 (see fig. 1). A version of the etching is sold together with this painting.

The family group presented on this unidentified terrace in Brussels, have been identified as members of the Lefèvre tapestry weaving dynasty, with the family coat of arms visible on the right (identifiable in J. P. Rietstap’s Armorial Général , s. vol. I, p. 654).

However, this identification appears unlikely. Whilst some of the portrayed persons clearly belong to a well-to-do merchant class family and are dressed in black, other attendants of the concert are of the aristocracy, whilst the young boy playing with the dog is marked out as a member of a ruling family by his red heels. The coat of arms in the upper right corner that serves as the basis of the traditional identification is clearly painted over another coat of arms, most likely an “Allianzwappen” that is crowned by a French Marquis’ Crown. Further research and restoration may lead to the eventual identification of the sitters. Owing to the scarce documentation conserved about the Volders family of artists, there had been uncertainty if Louis Volders and Lancelot Volders were two distinct personalities, until Leen Kelchtermans convincingly proposed that they are in fact identical artists (see Leen Kelchtermans (2013), „Brussel - Leeuwarden: nieuwe gegevens over de Brusselse schilders Lancelot en Louis Volders“, in Kelchtermans, L.; Van der Stighelen, K.; Brosens, K. Embracing Brussels. Art and Culture in the Court City, 1600-1800. Turnhout: pp. 213–238). The present painting appears to have been one of Lancelot Volders’ earlier works. Given that he was later to work for the Friesian Stadhouders in Leeuwarden he seems to have been familiar with court circles, and the fact that he was possibly invited by Princess Henriette Amalia of Anhalt Dessau to become her court painter, following her visit to the governors court in Brussels in 1689, may point to his involvement with the Spanish Habsburg Court in Brussels.

Lancelot Volders painted a very similar musical group portrait, albeit somewhat smaller, that was previously in the collection of Sellier de Moranville, Belgium. In the Museo Lazaro Galdiano, Madrid, is a painting attributed to Volders, which also features a large family group with instruments on a palatial terrace, probably in Brussels. This suggests that the compositional structure of the present painting was not executed singularly. Yet, while there are other known variants of the musical family portrait, the size and scale of this painting would appear to be the grandest known expression.

The instruments depicted are also of interest: Volders included a violin, a viol da gamba and a theorbo lute.

The present painting is recorded in the RKD under Art Work Number 274826 as an autograph work by Volders.

Additional image:
The engraving by Edmund Joseph Ramus (1822-1890), La par tie de musique, published in ‘L’Ar t’, circa 1880-1883