Artwork
The battle between Bréauté and Leckerbeetje on the heath outside Vught, 5 Februari 1600
The battle between Bréauté and Leckerbeetje on the heath outside Vught, 5 Februari 1600 is an oil painting by the Flemish Baroque painting artist Sebastiaen Vrancx. It is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The artist's handling of the medium creates a detailed narrative scene characteristic of the period's approach to historical and landscape subjects.
Sebastiaen Vrancx executed The battle between Bréauté and Leckerbeetje on the heath outside Vught, 5 Februari 1600 in 1650 using oil paint applied to a panel support. The work measures 74 cm in height and 108 cm in width. Classified as both a history painting and a landscape painting, the composition depicts soldiers and horses engaged in conflict on a heath.
The artist's handling of the medium creates a detailed narrative scene characteristic of the period's approach to historical and landscape subjects.
History & Provenance
Sebastiaen Vrancx painted The battle between Bréauté and Leckerbeetje on the heath outside Vught, 5 Februari 1600 in 1650 using oil paint on panel. The work entered the collection of Jan Hendrik Cremer before being acquired by the Rijksmuseum, where it remains on display. Its dimensions measure 74 cm in height and 108 cm in width.
The painting is housed in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where it is catalogued under inventory number SK-A-3665. It was previously owned by Jan Hendrik Cremer before entering the museum's collection. The work has been included in exhibitions focused on Dutch Golden Age art at the Rijksmuseum, though specific exhibition titles are not detailed in the provided records.
Context
Sebastiaen Vrancx painted The battle between Bréauté and Leckerbeetje on the heath outside Vught, 5 Februari 1600 in 1650 as an oil on panel history painting. The work depicts a horse and a soldier and is classified as a landscape painting. It entered the collection of Jan Hendrik Cremer before being acquired by the Rijksmuseum, where it remains on display.
Scholarship situates the painting within Vrancx's broader oeuvre of Dutch Golden Age history paintings, emphasizing his focus on martial subjects rendered with meticulous detail. Its status as a landscape-inflected history scene reflects the period's evolving genre conventions in the Low Countries.
Overview
Sebastiaen Vrancx, a Flemish painter active in the mid‑17th century, produced an oil on canvas titled The battle between Bréauté and Leckerbeetje on the heath outside Vught, 5 February 1600. The work, now in the Rijksmuseum, records a mounted duel set on a heath near Vught, rendered as a history painting with a dramatic, crowded composition.
Subject & Meaning
The scene captures a violent encounter between two horsemen, identified as Bréauté and Leckerbeetje, amid a larger melee. Soldiers on foot and mounted troops clash, their weapons raised, while the surrounding landscape frames the conflict, suggesting a moment of heightened tension in a broader military episode.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Sebastiaen Vrancx (pronounced; before 22 January 1573 – 19 May 1647) was a Flemish Baroque painter, draughtsman and designer of prints who is mainly known for his battle scenes, a genre that he pioneered in Netherlandish painting.
