Anton van Dyck (after), Rinaldo and Armida

Anton van Dyck (after), Rinaldo and Armida

Oil on canvas, 132 × 102 cm
The painting is unsigned and is a copy of a work by Anthony van Dyck, most likely executed in the 19th century. The copyist based the composition on an engraving reproducing the original painting held in the Louvre, or on other paintings derived from that engraving. This is indicated, among other things, by the mirror-image reversal of the composition, a feature characteristic of copies made after prints.

A similar composition can be found in a painting held by the Museum of King Jan III’s Palace at Wilanow (Poland). It features comparable elements, including the arrangement of the figures, the city in the background and the distinctive fan of white feathers. The Wilanow version also extends the scene further to the right, showing a section omitted from the 19th-century copy.

Condition: Good. The varnish has darkened with age, and there are minor localised losses to the paint layer in the right-hand section of the painting. Traces of canvas lining are visible on the reverse.