Schilders, connoisseurs en hun (Salomons)oordeel: Het Schilderijenkabinet (1659) van Jacob de Formentrou en Erasmus II Quellinus

Abstract

Iconographical analysis shows that the Cabinet of Pictures (Windsor Castle, RoyalCollection) clearly exemplifies the cooperation between only two painters: Jacob de Formentrou and Erasmus II Quellinus. Iconographic research also confirms that these artists depicted connoisseurs in this painting. Several elements (the eagle, the judgement of Salomon, etc) refer to connoisseurship: the depicted connoisseurs evaluate, from an intellectual point of view, the authorship of paintings based on stylistic characteristics. The act of attributing the paintings is the central theme in the Cabinet of Pictures, as is highlighted by multiple signatures, monograms andiconographic details.