Artcurial will offer a small Dutch winter landscape attributed to Anthonie Verstraelen on 15 September, with an estimate of €15,000–20,000 ($17,500–23,000). In 1937, the same painting was still offered as the work of an unknown Dutch master, with a monogram that was then read as ‘HA’. The question, therefore, is not only what the painting is worth, but above all: how did Verstraelen’s name become attached to it?
At first glance, Winter Landscape with an Ambush is exactly the kind of small seventeenth-century winter landscape that can easily disappear among more imposing Old Masters. A frozen landscape, bare trees, a church tower in the distance and a handful of figures acting out a violent encounter on a country road. The composition is appealing enough.
Look a little longer, however, and the panel reveals a rather clever construction. The heavy tree trunks on either side frame the scene almost like stage wings. Between them, the road cuts diagonally into the distance, passing a covered wagon before leading towards a second cart farther back. The figures in the foreground are small, but their dispersal across the open space gives the ambush a certain nervous energy. One horseman appears to be breaking away from the commotion, while armed men move towards the centre from different directions.
The winter sky contributes to the effect. There is no brilliant blue or cheerful skating scene here, but a yellowish, slightly murky light that makes the landscape feel more ominous than convivial. It was precisely this combination of winter landscape and small narrative scene that caught our attention. But on the dark tree at right is another detail that makes the painting more intriguing: a monogram.[1]
In 1937, it read ‘HA’
The painting can be identified in the Lost Art database. Its dimensions, support, subject and old inventory numbers correspond with the present lot. The composition itself also leaves little room for doubt. At a Julius Böhler sale in Munich in 1937, the painting appeared as lot 697 and was offered as the work of an unknown seventeenth-century Dutch master. More importantly, the monogram on the tree was explicitly read as “HA”.[2] Monograms on Old Master paintings can, of course, become exceptionally difficult to decipher through varnish, abrasion, overpainting and restoration.
Why Verstraelen makes sense
Anthonie Verstraelen, born around 1594 and deceased in 1641, specialised in winter landscapes and his work has historically been confused with that of Hendrick Avercamp.[3] That is not particularly surprising. Both artists inhabit a similar world of bare trees, ice, low horizons, diminutive figures and landscapes that function simultaneously as setting and subject.
A useful comparison can be found in the Mauritshuis. Verstraelen’s Winter Landscape of 1623 is monogrammed and dated at lower right with AVS, the letters intertwined.[4] A signed winter landscape from 1626 offered by Sotheby’s in 2023 likewise bears the monogram AVS.[5] This immediately explains why the Böhler monogram is so interesting. It does not invalidate the present attribution, but it does call for an explanation.
Stylistically, the attribution is certainly not implausible. The curved trees, low horizon, scattered figures and use of small narrative scenes all fit comfortably within Verstraelen’s oeuvre. The way the landscape is framed by large trees is also convincing. Equally interesting is how little space the actual ambush occupies. The figures are important to the narrative but remain subordinate to the landscape. That is characteristic of many Dutch landscapes of the period: the anecdote draws the viewer in, but ultimately the picture is at least as much about space and atmosphere.
An unusual Verstraelen
The subject also differs from the type of composition with which Verstraelen is most commonly associated. His better-known works generally show busy scenes on the ice: skaters, kolf players, walkers and sleighs on a frozen river or canal. Here, the landscape is emptier and more threatening. Horsemen and armed figures dominate the foreground, while the frozen water at left barely functions as a setting for winter recreation.
The further a painting departs from an artist’s secure core oeuvre, the more important other points of reference become: signature, technique, support, provenance and, above all, comparison with firmly documented works. One possibility is that the monogram itself is problematic. Signatures and initials could be strengthened, altered or added at a later date. The panel had, incidentally, already been offered by Artcurial in November 2022 as “attributed to Anthonie Verstraelen”.[6]
€15,000–20,000 does not look expensive
The auction house has placed an estimate of €15,000–20,000 ($17,500–23,000) on the painting. At first glance, that may sound substantial for a small panel whose authorship has not been firmly established. The market for Verstraelen suggests the opposite. In November 2025, Artcurial sold a smaller winter scene measuring 17.5 by 28 centimetres, catalogued under Verstraelen’s name without the qualification “attributed to”. It carried the same estimate of €15,000–20,000 and achieved a sale price of €29,128 (approximately $34,000).[7]
Better-documented and monogrammed works by Verstraelen can go considerably further. A winter landscape bearing an AVS monogram and date, accompanied by an expertise from Klaus Ertz, sold at Lempertz in 2015 for €62,000 including buyer’s premium.[8] A larger winter scene at Venduehuis reached a hammer price of €135,000 in 2024.[9]
The provenance, incidentally, is extensively documented. An agreement has been reached ahead of the present sale with the rightful claimant to Galerie Matthiesen.[1][2] Perhaps Böhler’s ‘HA’ was nothing more than an old misreading. If Winter Landscape with an Ambush could be sold convincingly and without qualification as a work by Verstraelen, €15,000–20,000 would look relatively cautious. With the words “attributed to” attached, the estimate becomes easier to understand. The uncertainty surrounding the artist is already reflected in the price: a buyer here is not simply buying a winter landscape. They are also buying an attribution question.
Do you have a particular interest in this artist or in this subject?
Do you follow this artist, or have you come across a work you would like to know more about? We regularly research works appearing on the market and are always happy to exchange views on quality, provenance, art-historical context and previous auction results. You can contact us directly via info@antonello.art.
Notes and Sources
[1] Artcurial, Maîtres anciens & du XIXe siècle, Paris, 15 September 2026, lot 181, Winter Landscape with an Ambush, attributed to Anthonie Verstraelen; oil on oak panel, 31.5 × 43.5 cm; monogram on the tree at right; estimate €15,000–20,000.
[2] Deutsches Zentrum Kulturgutverluste, Lost Art database, ID 626331, Winter Landscape; with reference to Julius Böhler, Munich, 1937, lot 697, and the reading of the monogram as “HA”.
[3] Dorotheum, Old Master Paintings, Vienna, 24 April 2024, lot 42, Anthonie Verstraelen, Skaters on the Ice; including a discussion of the historical confusion between works by Verstraelen and Hendrick Avercamp.
[4] Mauritshuis, The Hague, Anthonie Verstraelen, Winter Landscape, 1623, inv. 659; signed and dated “AVS 16[.]3”.
[5] Sotheby’s, Master Paintings and Sculpture Part II, New York, 27 January 2023, lot 449, Anthonie Verstraelen, Winter Landscape on a Frozen Canal with Kolfers, Skaters and a Horse-Drawn Sleigh, monogrammed and dated AVS 1626.
[6] Artcurial, Collection baron & baronne Vaxelaire, Un hommage familial, Paris, 9 November 2022, lot 30, Winter Landscape with an Ambush, attributed to Anthonie Verstraelen.
[7] Artcurial, Maîtres anciens & du XIXe siècle, Paris, 25 November 2025, lot 54, Anthonie Verstraelen, Winter Skating Scene; estimate €15,000–20,000, published sale price €29,128.
[8] Lempertz, Gemälde und Zeichnungen Alter Meister und des 19. Jahrhunderts, Cologne, 14 November 2015, lot 1472, Anthonie Verstraelen, Winter Landscape; monogrammed and dated AVS, with an expertise by Klaus Ertz; realised price €62,000 including buyer’s premium.
[9] Venduehuis der Notarissen, Old Masters, Nineteenth Century & Early Modern Art, The Hague, 12 November 2024, lot 21, Anthonie Verstraelen, Fun on the Ice by the City Edge; hammer price €135,000.
