Pair of paintings, Southern Netherlands or Germany (?), circa 1690-1710, Pair of paintings, Southern Netherlands or Germany (?), circa 1690-1710

72 × 117 cm

1) River landscape with a tall church tower
2) River landscape with tower ruins


1) A river flows through a landscape with mountains rising in the center and background, to the right. At the foot of the rocky mountain behind the wall lies a small town on the shore. The very tall church tower with corner bay windows in the middle of the picture is striking. An ancient ruin can be seen on the rock. Some figures enliven the foreground.
2) The landscape of the second painting is composed in a similar way. A river flows into the center of the painting, a strip of bank with figures in the foreground and a large tree on the right edge of the painting. In this painting, the ruin of a tall medieval tower rises on the left edge.
The decorative, detailed and picturesque fantasy landscapes follow the tradition of Dutch river landscapes, but the houses and churches are predominantly of a Central European character. It is therefore difficult to determine whether the artist belongs to the Dutch, or German school.
A similar anonymous river landscape with architecture can be found in the National Museum in Lublin (Muzeum Narodowe w Lublinie, canvas, 38 × 57 cm, inv. no. S/Mal/91/ML, see https://rkd.nl/explore/images / 58263). This means that three paintings by this nameless painter would already be known.
Size 72×117 cm
Oil on canvas