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Tobias Stranover
Description
- Tobias Stranover
- A Great Curassow, Silver Pheasant, Golden Pheasant and other birds in a landscape
- signed and dated lower left: T. Stranover/1728
- oil on canvas
Provenance
Private collection, USA.
Condition
"This lot is offered for sale subject to Sotheby's Conditions of Business, which are available on request and printed in Sotheby's sale catalogues. The independent reports contained in this document are provided for prospective bidders' information only and without warranty by Sotheby's or the Seller."
Catalogue Note
Stranover characteristically groups both exotic and native species, and large, showy birds with smaller ones, to create a lively gathering of avian colors, shapes and behavior. The centerpiece of Stranover’s painting is a female Great Curassow (Crax rubra), a large bird of the turkey family found in the rainforests of Mexico and Central America. The aesthetic attraction is its black and white, curly crest and barred tail offset by a reddish body. Equally dramatic are the male Silver Pheasant (Lophura nycthemera) and Golden Pheasant (Chrysolophus pictus) to the left, both natives of China but brought to Europe for their spectacular plumage. Tucked at the feet of the Curassow are two resident British species, the Red-legged Partridge (Alectoris graeca, originally from southern Europe) and Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus), attacking its favorite food, shellfish. Behind the Curassow is a Common Pheasant (Phasianus colchicus), introduced into Europe from Asia in the 11th century. To the right is a Guinea Fowl, related to pheasants and originally from Africa, but long domesticated for its meat. Behind is another Oystercatcher, an adult with the white "chinstrap" of winter plumage. Across the top of the painting are a Pigeon in flight, a Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax) and a male Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis).1
1. Birds identified by David Dallas.