Even in ancient times, people were interested in the birth of civilisation. The Roman Lucretius described the primitive human as a naked hunter with a club, sleeping at night under the leaves 'like a bristly boar'. He could have been thinking of the tribes of barbarians, who then lived in the enormous European forests. The painting of the Antwerp nobleman Cornelis van Dalem shows a different start of civilisation. Although some of the primitive beings are dressed in animal skins, they are not hunters but livestock farmers. The main feature of this painting is the imposing and capricious rock landscape.
Specifications
| Title | Landscape with the Dawn of Civilisation |
|---|---|
| Material and technique | Oil on panel |
| Object type |
Painting
> Painting
> Two-dimensional object
> Art object
|
| Location | This object is in storage |
| Dimensions |
Height 88,5 cm Width 164 cm Weight 30 |
|---|---|
| Artists |
Painter:
Cornelis van Dalem
|
| Accession number | 3363 (OK) |
| Credits | Purchased with the support of Stichting Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rembrandt Association, Stichting Elise Mathilde Fonds, Erasmus Foundation, Familiestichting Nolst Trenité, Van Ommeren-De Voogt Stichting, G.Ph. Verhagen Stichting, Stichting Van Wijngaarden-Boot, Ministry of Education, Culture and Science and VSBfonds, 1996 |
| Department | Old Masters |
| Acquisition date | 1996 |
| Creation date | in 1560 - 1570 |
| Internal exhibitions |
The Collection Enriched (2011) De collectie als tijdmachine (2017) Lievelingen (2024) |
| External exhibitions |
Paradise on Earth. Flemish Landscape Paintings from Bruegel to Rubens (2016) |
| Material | |
| Object | |
| Geographical origin | Southern Netherlands > The Netherlands > Western Europe > Europe |
