254. THE CARD-PLAYERS.Sm. __NOTOC__ Sir James Edward Smith (2 December 1759 – 17 March 1828) was an English botanist and founder of the Linnean Society. Early life and education Smith was born in Norwich in 1759, the son of a wealthy wool merchant. He displayed a ...48. ; de G. 41. In the right-hand corner of a room with a wooden ceiling and a tiled floor a young lady and a gentleman are playing cards at a table, while two other gentlemen look on. The lady, seated on the right, is about to play a card from her hand. On her left stands a cavalier, holding a pipe in his right hand; he wears a plumed hat and a doublet of light grey with pink ribbons; a grey cloak hangs upon a peg to the right. To the right of the lady sits another cavalier with cards in his hand, who glances up at the gentleman. A third young man, bareheaded and seen in full light, sits, with his back half-turned to the spectator, at the left-hand front corner of the table, drinking a glass of wine; he wears a black velvet jacket, yellow stockings, and high-heeled shoes. By the wall to the right is a couch with red velvet cushions. The room is flooded with light from a large window, divided into four compartments, behind the group. To the left an open door looks into a courtyard, through which a servant-girl comes with a jug and some pipes. Behind her is a house with a passage leading into a garden. This is one of the finest of the master's works. " The extraordinary luminous effect which pervades this picture renders it the admiration of every beholder. It is painted with singular mastery of hand, and exhibits throughout a consummate knowledge of the principles of art " (Sm.). Signed and dated 1658 ; canvas, 30 inches by 25 1/2 inches. Mentioned by Waagen (ii. n). Exhibited in the British Gallery in 1826 and 1827. Sales: * Is. Walraven, Amsterdam, October 14, 1763 (Terwesten, p. 504), No. 16 (480 florins, Van der Land). * Nic. Doekscheer, Amsterdam, September 9, 1789 (500 florins, Van der Schley). * P. N. Quarles van Ufford, Amsterdam, October 19, 1818 (2270 florins,Roos Roos is a village and civil parish in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It is situated east from Kingston upon Hull city centre and north-west from Withernsea, and on the B1242 road. History The de Ros family originated from the villa ...). * J. Hulswit, Amsterdam, October 28, 1822 (4500 florins). * Formerly in the Pourtales collection, according to Seguier ; see catalogue of the Buckingham Palace collection. * In the collection of Baron Mecklenburg, from whom Sm. bought it in 1825 (for 15,000 francs or £600), selling it to King George IV. in 1826. Now in the Royal Collection atBuckingham Palace Buckingham Palace () is a London royal residence and the administrative headquarters of the monarch of the United Kingdom. Located in the City of Westminster, the palace is often at the centre of state occasions and royal hospitality. It .... It was listed as number 22 in the 1885 catalogue."entry 254 for The Card-Players
in Hofstede de Groot, 1908
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Cardplayers in a Sunlit Room 1658 paintings Paintings by Pieter de Hooch Paintings in the Royal Collection of the United Kingdom