Thomas Wright, Norwood Park, Nottingham, by 1845;
By whom sold, London, Christie's, January 27, 1959, lot 97, for £2415 to Haward;
Sidney F. Sabin, 3 Jubilee Place, Chelsea, London;
With Frank T. Sabin, London;
Anonymous sale, London, Sotheby's, Decemer 13, 2001, lot 67.

Hamburg, Kunsthalle; Munich, Alte Pinakothek, Meisterwerke der Freanzöischen Malerei von Poussin bis Ingres, October 1952 - February 1953, no. 35.

The following condition report has been provided by Simon Parkes of Simon Parkes Art Conservation, Inc. 502 East 74th St. New York, NY 212-734-3920, simonparkes@msn.com , an independent restorer who is not an employee of Sotheby's. Despite the fact that this picture is probably slightly dirty and has been cleaned more in the figures than in the background, the condition is actually very good. The canvas has been lined and the surface is stable. The varnish is recent and there appears to be no reason for the picture not to be hung as is. There are remnants of old varnish in the darker colors behind the figures yet the figures themselves seem to be clean. There are a few cosmetic restorations situated around the extreme edges, a few tiny dots in the sky on both sides and also visible under ultraviolet light are a few very slight retouches around the figural group on the left side. There do not appear to be any other restorations of note beneath an older varnish and generally the condition is particularly good.
In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective qualified opinion.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING CONDITION OF A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD "AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF SALE PRINTED IN THE CATALOGUE.

Mary Tavener Holmes believes this to be Lancret's prime original of a composition that exists in two other possible versions, both listed by Wildenstein, but of unknown whereabouts. That formerly in the collection of Prince Youssoupoff¹, which Wildenstein attributed only tentatively from a poor photograph, appears however to be either a weaker version or an early copy (see Witt Library mount) ; the painting sold Paris, Lair-Dubreil, May 29, 1908, lot 25² is seemingly an autograph variant, with numerous differences to the landscape, notably the omission of the trees on the extreme right of the present mise-en-scène (see Witt Library mount). An engraving of the composition by François Joullain³ is most closely based on the present version, suggesting that this also provided the direct model for the engraving.

This elegant Concert Pastoral is an early work by Lancret and can be dated circa 1719-20 by comparison with two other works : a painting of  La Musique Champêtre, in the Hermitage, Saint Petersburg⁴ and a Conversation Galante in the Wallace Collection, London⁵ which is believed to have been the artist's reception piece for his entry into the Paris Académie on March 24, 1719. The similarities in the facial types, the accentuated poses, the acutely angled heads and the numerous number of pentiments are entirely characteristic of this period and provide an interesting insight into the artist's working technique at this time of his career. The pentiment in the present work of the left hand of the seated man in red around the waist of the woman holding a fan on his left demonstrates the artist's willingness to alter his compositions at working stage, and the man standing at the back of the main figurative group, which is present in the engraving, was almost certainly painted out by Lancret some time after the painting's completion.

Three preparatory drawings have been identified for the present painting : one, for the standing girl on the extreme right of the figure group, was sold London, Christie's, December 9, 1986, lot 109 (see fig. 4) ; another, for the seated lady wearing a grey dress on the right of the main group, was sold in London, Sotheby's, March 11, 1964, lot 251 (see fig. 3) ; and the other, for the seated lady wearing a shawl on the right of the main group, was in the Bellingham-Smith sale, Amsterdam, Frederick Muller, July 5-6, 1927, lot 5 (see fig.2).

We are grateful to Mary Tavener Holmes for confirming the attribution to Lancret, upon the basis of photographs, and for suggesting a date of execution circa 1719-1720. She will be including the work in her forthcoming catalogue raisonné on the artist.

1  See G. Wildenstein, Lancret, Paris 1924, p. 89, no. 273, measures 64.5 by 80.5 cm.
2  op. cit., no. 274, measures 62 by 78 cm.
3  op. cit., no. 272, reproduced pl.68.
4  op. cit., p.93, no. 336, pl.97.
5  In M.Tavener Holmes, Nicolas Lancret, exh.🌌 cat., The Frick Collection, New York, Nov. 1991 - Jan. 1992 and The Kimbell Art Museum, Fort Worth, Feb. - Apr. 1992, p.26, reproduced plate 2.