Dancing Peasants at a St. Sebastian's Kermis: A Rediscovered Painting by Pieter Bruegel the Elder

by Maximiliaan P.J. Martens

After it first surfaced in public, Dancing Peasants at a St. Sebastian's Kermis was recognised as a work by Pieter Bruegel the Elder, among others by Max Friedländer, the great connoisseur of Flemish painting. However, after it entered the collection of Baroness Bentinck-Thyssen-Bornemisza, the scholarly interest in the painting diminished. When it reappeared many decades later on the art market in a heavily restored condition, its artistic qualities could no longer be appreciated. Only after a recent judicious conservation treatment, a scientific examination of its materials and a new evaluation of its painting technique and style, the painting can be returned to one of the greatest masters of Western art history, Pieter Bruegel the Elder.

64 pages, Hardcover

Published July 24, 2019

About the author

Prof. dr. Maximiliaan P.J. Martens is hoogleraar Kunstwetenschappen, professor Technologie & Conservatie aan de Universiteit Gent, en is gespecialiseerd in kunst van de Lage Landen in de vijftiende en zestiende eeuw. Martens coördineerde het onderzoek ter ondersteuning van het Lam Gods aan de UGent.