After Adriaen Jansz. van Ostade, Dutch 1610-1685- A peasant courting an elderly woman; oil on canvas, 27.4 x 22.5 cm. Note: A late 18th-century oil after the original by van Ostade, dated 1653 and of similar dimensions, held in the National...

After Adriaen Jansz. van Ostade, Dutch 1610-1685- A peasant courting an elderly woman; oil on canvas, 27.4 x 22.5 cm. Note: A late 18th-century oil after the original by van Ostade, dated 1653 and of similar dimensions, held in the National Gallery, London [NG2542]. In a tender scene, an elderly peasant is depicted with a woman of similar age. He leans towards her, one hand on hers, the other holding a tall, full glass of beer. Her hand is on a long unbroken clay pipe, often considered a symbol of virginity in contemporary Dutch painting. She smiles a little, but has not yet raised her eyes to his, so we sense her shyness and uncertainty. In the eighteenth century a print of these two elderly lovers was known as ‘Het schollenmannetje’, literally ‘the little plaice man’, referring to the fish on the table, perhaps brought as a gift for the woman. The present work, in reverse from the original, was presumably taken from the printed version.
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