Walking stick, large carved ivory handle by Gerard van Opstal, Flanders mid-17th century.

Flanders, mid-17th century.

8000 EURO

Walking stick: Rare, large, finely carved ivory handle by Gerard van Opstal (ca. 1600–1668), one of the younger ivory carvers of the 17th century, who excelled in masterfully crafted carvings of mythological, allegorical, and bacchanalian themes. It depicts a reclining nude woman in a deeply sensual and reflective pose, while the children have unkempt hair and petulant, even irascible expressions (in contrast to the idealized, angelic cherubs created by his contemporaries). Cane: Rattan wood. Metal ferrule. Van Opstal studied in Brussels, then worked in Antwerp, before Cardinal Richelieu invited him to Paris in 1642, where he remained for the rest of his life. He was attached to the court of Louis XIV (1638–1715); The king was a great admirer of van Opstal’s ivory bas-reliefs, of which he owned 17 in his collection. Van Opstal also worked in stone and marble and created numerous architectural sculptures, including commissions for the Palais du Louvre and the Palais des Tuileries. In 1648, he helped found the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture. Flanders, mid-17th century. See: Catherine Dike and Guy Bezzaz, La Canne Objet d’Art, Les Éditions de l’Amateur, Paris, 1988, pp. 132-133. Roberta Maneker, Vertical Art: The Enduring Beauty of Antique Canes and Walking Sticks, Hudson Hills Press LLC, Manchester, Vermont, 2008, p. 176, caption no. 135
(SHIPPING IN THE EU ONLY)

31,75” – 81 CM H 5” – 12,5 CM L 1,5” – 4 CM D

REF: M6198

Walking stick: Rare, large, finely carved ivory handle by Gerard van Opstal (ca. 1600–1668), one of the younger ivory carvers of the 17th century, who excelled in masterfully crafted carvings of mythological, allegorical, and bacchanalian themes. It depicts a reclining nude woman in a deeply sensual and reflective pose, while the children have unkempt hair and petulant, even irascible expressions (in contrast to the idealized, angelic cherubs created by his contemporaries). Cane: Rattan wood. Metal ferrule. Van Opstal studied in Brussels, then worked in Antwerp, before Cardinal Richelieu invited him to Paris in 1642, where he remained for the rest of his life. He was attached to the court of Louis XIV (1638–1715); The king was a great admirer of van Opstal’s ivory bas-reliefs, of which he owned 17 in his collection. Van Opstal also worked in stone and marble and created numerous architectural sculptures, including commissions for the Palais du Louvre and the Palais des Tuileries. In 1648, he helped found the Académie Royale de Peinture et de Sculpture. Flanders, mid-17th century. See: Catherine Dike and Guy Bezzaz, La Canne Objet d’Art, Les Éditions de l’Amateur, Paris, 1988, pp. 132-133. Roberta Maneker, Vertical Art: The Enduring Beauty of Antique Canes and Walking Sticks, Hudson Hills Press LLC, Manchester, Vermont, 2008, p. 176, caption no. 135 
(SHIPPING IN THE EU ONLY)
31,75” – 81 CM H 5” – 12,5 CM L 1,5” – 4 CM D
REF: M6198