A Rocky Italian Landscape with Herdsmen and Muleteers

Artist: Jan Both (Dutch, About 1615 - 1652)

Original Dimensions: 40 1/2" x 49 1/4"

Location: National Gallery of Art, London

About Artwork: (About 1645) "The tranquillity of the Campagna – the countryside around Rome – stretches far into the distance under a soft golden light. Muleteers, who lived by transporting goods on the backs of their patient mules, move at a leisurely pace across the mountainous landscape, its paths winding in and out of rocky outcrops down to the misty valley. The sun catches the white sleeves, collar and stockings of two men – making them a focus of the picture – as they stop for a rest and a chat in the shade close to us. But all is not quite as perfect as first appears. The mule behind the herdsmen carries heavy rolls hanging from a cumbersome wooden saddle. His head droops and his legs are painfully thin. Although Both paints the countryside as a romantic idyll he makes sure that, for a discerning eye, the realities of life in the Italian hills are visible." - (National Gallery of Art, London)