Jan-Frans van Dael (1764-1840). "Still Life with Fruits, Flowers and Insects". Oil on panel. 1814. 83 x 65.5 cm. € 60,000-80,000.

Hamburg, 15. September 2008, (kk) - The Empress Josephine and Tsar Nikolas I were early admirers of their work: whereas Napoleon’s first wife acquired several paintings by Jan-Frans van Dael for her gallery, Carl Timoleon von Neff was the favourite painter of Tsar Nikolas I. Two major works by these artists are to go under the hammer at Ketterer Kunst in Hamburg on 25 October 2008.

Carrying an estimate of € 60,000-80,000 and measuring 83 x 65.5 cm, "Früchte- und Blumenstillleben mit Insekten" ["Still Life with Fruits, Flowers and Insects"], was painted by Jan-Frans van Dael in 1814 and heads the Art of the 19th Century division at the auction of Old Masters and Art of the 19th Century/Marine Art. Works by this Belgian artist are in the Uffizi in Florence, the Louvre in Paris and at the Petit Trianon in Versailles.

Timoleon von Neff (1805-1876). "A. Young Mother". Oil on canvas. 1843. 148 x 117.5 cm. € 50,000-70,000.

Carl Timoleon von Neff’s oil painting of "A Young Mother" measures 148 x 117.5 cm and carries an estimate of € 50,000- 70,000. It is bound to resonate not just with Western Europeans but also with Russians. Educated at the Dresden Academy and Painter to the Court of Tsar Nikolas I, von Neff should be viewed in the same context as Karl Pavlovic Briullov and Feodor Bruni. Moreover, the Young Mother motif also reflects von Neff’s love for Italy, which he often visited. In the 1820s he met the Nazarenes there and was made a member of the Florentine Academy in 1846.

From France comes a very atmospheric oil painting by Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot, which is also offered for sale for € 50,000-70,000. He painted "Une tour au loin. Effet du soir" ["A Tower in the Distance. Evening Mood"] ca 1870-74. Measuring 21.9 x 31.7 cm, this landscape by the leading exponent of the Barbizon School capitalises on the play of light and shade in a masterly and expressive rendering of wild, romantic scenery.

Carl Spitzweg (1808-1885). "Lagernde Karrner". Oil on wood. C 1870-75. 15.5 x 31.5 cm. € 40,000-50,000.

A particularly exciting landscape is from the hand of Carl Spitzweg, whose oil painting of "Lagernde Karrner" ["Gypsies Resting"] (c 1870-75) depicts a group of gypsies resting. The estimate of € 35,000- 45,000 is only slightly higher than the € 30,000-35,000 for "Schwabenmädel am Gartenzaun" ["Swabian Girl at the Garden Fence"], another Spitzweg in a slightly smaller format (17.8 x 22 cm), painted in oils on academy board.

Alongside Luis Álvarez Catalá’s "El paseo del cardenal" (estimate: € 25,000-30,000) and Paul Friedrich Meyerheim’s "Aquarellistin in italienischem Städtchen" ["Girl Painting in watercolours in an Italian Town"] (estimate: € 20,000-25,000), works by William Dyce, Gustave Leonard de Jonghe, Hugo Kauffmann and Friedrich Preller the Younger represent a stellar cluster in the Art of the 19th Century division.

Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn (1606-1669). "View of Amsterdam". Etching. C. 1640. 11 x 15.4 cm. € 40,000-50,000.

The Old Masters division is giving star billing to two etchings by Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn. His "View of Amsterdam", which was the master’s first landscape etching, is one of Rembrandt’s most sought-after etchings, not least because the plate has been lost, carries an estimate of € 40,000-50,000. The estimate for "Christ Healing the Sick¨", famously known as the Hundred Guilder print, is in the € 30,000-40,000 range.

Another top Old Master work is the 1649 Adriaen van Utrecht "Still Life with Hares and Game Birds" (estimate: € 40,000-60,000). Owned by an aristocratic family in Schleswig-Holstein, it is on the art market for the first time in about 150 years. After the excellent prices achieved for two similar works by this artist (estimate: € 40,000; sold for: € 84,000* and estimate: € 50,000; sold for: € 122,000*) at the two most recent Ketterer Kunst auctions, this oil painting is expected to cause a stir when it is called.

An "Ideal Southern Landscape" attributed to Claude Joseph Vernet carries an estimate of € 28,000-35,000. Measuring 32 x 40.5 cm, this oil painting dates from c. 1753. The emphasis here is on composition. In his predilection for the poetic and dramatic aspects of scenery, Vernet reflects the sensitivity to the atmospheric qualities of nature characteristic of his era.

Other Old Master works that are definitely worth a close look are Karl Wilhelm de Hamilton’s "Waldbodenstillleben mit Distel, Schmetterling und Nachtfalter" ["Still Life with Thistle, Butterfly and Nocturnal Moth"] (estimate: € 12,000-15,000) and works by Cristofano Allori, Frans Francken II, Cornelis de Vos and others.

In the Marine Art division, names such as Friedrich Kallmorgen, whose oil painting (c. 1912) of a "Fischkutter auf der Elbe" ["Cutter on the Elbe"] enters the lists at € 4,000-5,000, Theodor Wilhelm Schäkel and Claus Bergen stand for quality.

Pre-sale viewings of selected works have been scheduled for the following dates, times and venues:

Alle Werke werden gezeigt:

*Sale price equals hammer price plus buyer’s premium.