A concert - Angel playing violin and several birds singing with musical score

A concert - Angel playing violin and several birds singing with musical score
oil on canvas
Dutch school
17th C.
relined, restoration
signature and inscription Casperis Lynpheum. Ad[d]idit et[iam] mare, probably Casper van Eyck (1613-1673)
Dim. - 204 x 140 cm
Notes: according to the reading and erudite interpretation of Prof. Dr. Arnaldo Monteiro do Espírito Santo, which we fully follow and which we summarize below:

1. The visible inscription on the work corresponds to "Casperis Lynpheum. Ad [d] idit et [iam] mare", whose translation into Portuguese is "Casper's Linfeu. Added the sea";

2. The inscription is at the entrance of a "Linfeu" or "Ninfeu", refreshing grotto, with a water source, in ancient times dedicated to the Nymphs, and very fashionable in the gardens of the Renaissance palaces. At the base of the painting, on the right side, you can see that water is flowing, it seems, from inside the cave;

3. The novelty of this picture is that the grotto is next to the sea, where the spring water flows: this aspect is emphasized in "Ad [d] idit et [iam] mare";

4. Regarding the question of who is the subject of Ad [d] idit, it seems obvious that the answer lies in "Casperis", the author's genitive.

5. This deduction and the research carried out point to the name of Casper van Eyck (1613-1673) as a possible author of the painting;

6. In fact, Casper van Eyck is a renowned author of marines, with the sea and water being constant features in his work, even where it was not expected, as in the Ninfeu - which is usually located in the space of forests, mountains and mountains. gardens. Hence the "Ad

[d] idit et [iam] mare", which expresses (etiam) with emphasis this originality of the painting;

7. A curiosity is that "Addidit etiam mare" appears in a booklet of metrics exercises published in the 19th century, which may mean that this phrase may have been taken from a previous author, manual, or emblem, which could not be identified;

8. Most likely, the mention "Addidit etiam mare" refers to verse 38 of Liber I of Ovid's "Metamorphoses" «Addidit [...] et stagna immense» which can be translated as "Added the immensity of the waters". This verse is part of a description in which Ovid draws a picture of the earth with words as the elements that constitute it are created. It is not excluded that the reference to Ovid, at a time when "Metamorphoses" were known to a very wide audience, is understood as being an element that offers lines of interpretation for this "Linpheum", and as if indicating the source in which the painter was inspired.

Cabral Moncada Leilões registers and thanks Prof. Dr. Arnaldo Monteiro do Espírito Santo reading and interpreting the inscription in question.