Pieter de Jode II, “Adam de Coster”, 1630–45, after Anthony van Dyck

Pieter de Jode II (also known as Petrus de Iode) (1606–1674)

“Adam de Coster” (or “Portret van Adam de Coster”), 1630–45

Contextual Commentary:

The sitter is the Flemish painter Adam de Coster (c. 1586–1643), a prominent member of the Antwerp Caravaggisti—a group of artists influenced by Caravaggio. De Coster was known as a pictor noctium, or “Painter of Nights,” for his dramatically lit nocturnal scenes. The Latin inscription beneath the portrait, “PICTOR NOCTIVM MECHLINIENSIS,” means “Painter of Nights from Mechelen,” a city in Flanders also known by its French name, Malines.

The image is based on Anthony van Dyck’s (1599–1641) grisaille painting in the collection of the Duke of Buccleuch at Boughton House (inv. no. 191). The British Museum also notes a related grisaille in the Musée Bonnat, Bayonne (inv. no. 938), and a preparatory black-chalk drawing in the Städel Museum, Frankfurt (inv. no. 789). See British Museum inv. no. R,1a.85.

Technical Details & Condition:

Engraving and etching on laid paper with a grape watermark of French origin, with wide margins as published.

The print belongs to the celebrated series after Van Dyck, Icones Principum Virorum.

This impression is from the final state, state six of six. In this state, the initials of the mid-17th-century publisher Gillis Hendricx have been burnished out. Their complete removal distinguishes the later edition published by Arkstée & Merkus in Amsterdam and Leipzig around 1750.

The impression is richly inked and finely printed, with no visible signs of plate wear. Aside from a collector’s ink stamp on the verso and faint pencil notations along the lower edge of the recto, the sheet is in excellent condition, free of tears, holes, folds, abrasions, and significant stains.

Dimensions:

• Sheet: 36.2 x 25.2 cm
• Platemark: 23.4 x 16.8 cm
• Image borderline: 21.5 x 16.3 cm

In-Plate Lettering (below the image):

• Left: “Ant. van Dyck pinxit / Petrus de Iode sculpsit.”
• Centre: “ADAM DE COSTER. / PICTOR NOCTIVM MECHLINIENSIS.”
• Right: “Cum priuilegio”

References:

• Mauquoy-Hendricx (Van Dyck) 31: Marie Mauquoy-Hendrickx, L’iconographie d’Antoine van Dyck: Catalogue Raisonné, vol. 1 (Brussels: Royal Library Albert I, 1991), p. 127, cat. no. 31.
• New Hollstein Dutch 56: Simon Turner, The New Hollstein: Dutch and Flemish Etchings, Engravings, and Woodcuts 1450–1700, vol. 2 (Rotterdam: Sound and Vision, 2002), p. 28, cat. no. 56.
• Rijksmuseum, object number RP-P-OB-7850: https://id.rijksmuseum.nl/200209470
• British Museum, museum number 1863,0509.901: https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1863-0509-901

Price & Shipping:

AU$288 (approximately US$202.62 / €181.46 / £151.33), including worldwide express shipping. Any applicable import duties and taxes are the buyer’s responsibility.

To enquire about this fine portrait of Adam de Coster, please contact me at oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com. I’ll be happy to send you a PayPal invoice for a straightforward payment.

Please note: The scan contrast has been digitally enhanced to show the print’s details more clearly. As a result, the image tones may not fully reflect the subtle tonal qualities of the original.