Who painted Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer?

Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer was painted by Roelant Savery in 1617-01-01.

Where can I see Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer?

Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer is held by Rijksmuseum.

What movement is Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer?

Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer is associated with Dutch Golden Age.

Can I buy a print of Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer?

Museum-quality prints of Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer are available made-to-order from Artifact World Gallery.

Landscape with ruins, cattle and deer by Roelant Savery (1617)

About this work

Subject & Meaning

Consequently, while the fable interpretation remains common in literature, the work may simply represent a pastoral scene without a specific allegorical story.

The painting depicts a hilly landscape featuring lushly overgrown ruins on both sides, populated by various animals including donkeys eating straw, drinking cows, and goats. A deer and a hind are shown secretly drinking alongside the cattle while two shepherds lying in the background remain unaware. Historically, this scene was interpreted as an illustration of an Aesop fable where a stag fleeing hunters finds refuge in a stable, only to be discovered and killed by a farmer.

However, art historian Yvette Bruijnen challenges this specific narrative reading, noting significant discrepancies such as the absence of a stable, the presence of a hind, and the inclusion of animals not mentioned in the fable. Consequently, while the fable interpretation remains common in literature, the work may simply represent a pastoral scene without a specific allegorical story.

Technique & Style

The work is executed in oil paint on panel, a support combination documented for the composition. According to the Wikidata record, the panel measures 46 cm in height by 69.1 cm in width, yielding a horizontal landscape format characteristic of Roelant Savery's panoramic scenes.

Stylistically, the painting presents a hilly landscape framed by densely overgrown ruins on either side, populated with multiple species of livestock, straw-eating mules on the left, water-drinking cows on the right, and two goats in the middle distance. A stag and hind appear at the far right, drinking alongside the cattle, while two shepherds recline on the ground in the middle distance, oblivious to the animals. The composition unites naturalistic animal observation with a fabled narrative reading, and scholars have linked it stylistically to two related Savery works: one in the Müllenmeister collection, Solingen (dated 1614), and one formerly at Schloss Mosigkau (dated 1618, now lost).

History & Provenance

Roelant Savery signed the panel at the lower left with '·ROELANDT / ·SAVERY· FE[CIT]'. The composition is closely related to two other Savery paintings: one in the Müllenmeister collection in Solingen, dated 1614, and one at Schloss Mosigkau, dated 1618 and since lost. Kurt Erasmus dated the Maastricht version around 1618 on the basis of its similarities to the Mosigkau panel, while Kurt Müllenmeister placed it a few years later, around 1621, and considered it the finest example of the group.

In February 1889 the painting was purchased by the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam for 250 guilders from the dealer C.L.C. Voskuil in Nieuwer-Amstel. In 2002 it was transferred on loan to the Bonnefanten Museum in Maastricht.

The painting is held in the Rijksmuseum collection and was accessioned by the museum in February 1889.

It was displayed in the exhibition 'Rijksmuseum: Masterpieces' in 1995.

In 2002, the work was loaned to the Bonnefantenmuseum in Maastricht for display.

The painting is part of the Rijksmuseum's permanent collection and has been featured in exhibitions at both the Rijksmuseum and the Bonnefantenmuseum.

Overview

Roelant Savery, a painter born in Flanders who worked during the Dutch Golden Age, completed the oil on canvas titled Landscape with Ruins, Cattle and Deer in 1617. The composition belongs to the landscape tradition of the early seventeenth century and is presently part of the Rijksmuseum’s collection in Amsterdam.

Context

During Savery’s career, Dutch and Flemish artists increasingly focused on detailed naturalistic depictions, often populating landscapes with animals and ruins to evoke a sense of pastoral nostalgia. This work reflects that trend, combining meticulous observation of flora and fauna with architectural fragments that suggest a vanished past.

Artist & collection

Artist

Roelant Savery

Roelant Savery (or Roeland(t) Maertensz Saverij, or de Savery, or many variants; 1576 – buried 25 February 1639) was a Flanders-born Dutch Golden Age painter.