Shepherd and Shepherdess

Adriaen van der Werff was apprenticed to Eglon van der Neer. Working primarily in Rotterdam and later for the Elector Palatine in Düsseldorf, van der Werff developed a highly finished style of painting which drew heavily on Renaissance models and antique sculptures. He also became well-known for his depictions of classical mythological subjects, and during his lifetime was internationally regarded as the most important living Dutch painter. His Shepherd and Shepherdess typifies the sensual and quasi-mythological subject matter reminiscent of the work of Gérard de Lairesse. Its technical virtuosity and artistic quality meant that the 4th Marquess had to pay the large sum of 20,000 francs (about £800) for it in 1868.