Property from the Estate of Ambassador J. William Middendorf II, Rhode Island
Cornelis Pietersz Bega
Suitor with a Woman at a Spinning Wheel
Live auction begins on:
February 6, 03:00 PM GMT
Estimate
15,000 - 20,000 USD
Bid
8,000 USD
Lot Details
Description
Property from the Estate of Ambassador J. William Middendorf II, Rhode Island
Cornelis Pietersz Bega
probably Haarlem 1631 - 1664 Haarlem
Suitor with a Woman at a Spinning Wheel
signed and dated lower right: C. Bega 1662
oil on canvas
canvas: 14 ⅛ by 12 ¾ in.; 35.6 by 32.4 cm
framed: 18 ⅜ by 17 ⅛ in.; 46.7 by 43.5 cm
Paul Bureau (1874-1915), Paris;
His estate sale, Paris, Galerie Georges Petit, 20 May 1927, lot 17 (as "Bega");
Private collection, Switzerland;
Anonymous sale, Zurich, Schuler Auctions, 20-24 March 2017, lot 3106;
Anonymous sale, Vienna, Dorotheum, 24 April 2018, lot 87;
Where acquired.
This intimate genre scene exemplifies Cornelis Pietersz Bega’s refined approach to everyday life. Set within a modest interior, a young woman pauses at her spinning wheel, an emblem of domestic virtue, while a suitor leans toward her in quiet conversation. Bega animates the encounter through nuanced gestures that bring the courtship to life.
Executed in a shadowed, restrained palette with delicate handling, the composition reflects Bega’s close ties to the Haarlem school and echoes the example of his teacher, Adriaen van Ostade, a leading master of genre painting. The scene’s unassuming simplicity, infused with human warmth, situates the work within the Dutch Golden Age tradition.
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