Dutch Game Still Life Painting, Framed Oil on Canvas, Baroque Gilt Frame

19th-century oil painting by renowned Dutch Romantic painter Cornelis Samuel Stortenbeker (1828-1898), best known for his atmospheric landscapes, farm scenes, and hunting-themed still lifes. A pupil of the celebrated master Andreas Schelfhout, Stortenbeker was part of the Dutch Romantic movement that captured rural life with painterly precision and emotional depth.

This particular work presents a hanging game bird, suspended by a simple cord against a rich, dark background — a motif evocative of Dutch Golden Age still lifes. The bird is rendered with remarkable anatomical accuracy and soft tonal gradation, showcasing Stortenbeker's sensitivity to form, light, and realism.

The canvas is signed "C.S." in the lower left and mounted in a striking hand-carved baroque-style gilt frame with acanthus leaf corners and scrollwork — a fitting complement to the painting's dramatic subject.


📐 Artwork Details:

Artist: Cornelis Samuel Stortenbeker (1828-1898)

Title: Hanging Game Bird Still Life

Medium: Oil on canvas

Signature: "C.S." (lower left)

Canvas dimensions: approx. 40 x 50 cm (15.7 x 19.7 in)

Framed dimensions: approx. 67 x 58 cm (26.4 x 22.8 in)

Frame: Gilded baroque-style wooden frame, richly decorated and well preserved

Provenance: Acquired via Dutch auction, attributed with full confidence to the artist

Excellent condition for its age. Original canvas with minor age-related craquelure, structurally stable. Frame is intact with gentle wear, adding to the authentic 19th-century aesthetic.

🏛️ About the Artist:
Cornelis Samuel Stortenbeker (1828-1898) was an established painter from The Hague, educated at the Royal Academy and trained under the landscape master Andreas Schelfhout. His works exhibit a clear Romantic sensibility, blending precision with mood. He is listed in several artist lexicons and is represented in musea and private collections and auction records across Europe.
Cornelis Samuel Stortenbeker was born in The Hague on October 29, 1838, and died there on April 16, 1885. He lived and worked in The Hague throughout his life. He was a pupil of his brother, P. Stortenbeker, and also studied under Cornelis Bisschop.

Stortenbeker was a member of the prestigious artist society Pulchri Studio in The Hague and later became a teacher at the Royal Academy of Art in the same city. He is especially known for his still lifes and bird studies, which often featured dead birds, kingfishers, robins, swallows, and other nature scenes rendered with great sensitivity and realism.

He exhibited regularly between 1861 and 1885 in both Amsterdam and The Hague, showing works such as:

Still lifes with dead birds

A kingfisher

Winter birds

Swallows about to take flight

Under the alders

Christmas carolers (watercolour)

Autumn scenes

Village life under thatched roofs

Nature studies with poetic titles like In Anticipation and By the Lakes

Museum collections:

Rijksmuseum Print Cabinet, Amsterdam: Drawings

Groninger Museum: Several watercolours with dead birds

Museum Boijmans Van Beuningen, Rotterdam: Works including a goldfinch, a robin, and a great tit against white backgrounds, signed "C.S.S."

🏠 Perfect for:
Collectors of Dutch Romanticism or Old Master-style works
Antique decorators, gallery owners, and interior designers
Historical homes, libraries, offices, or traditional interiors
Feature piece above a fireplace or in a formal entryway
hunting, gun, trophy room

💡 Investment Note:
With increasing interest in 19th-century Dutch realism and academically trained artists, works by Stortenbeker are becoming more desirable among collectors. His connection to Schelfhout adds academic weight, and this still life's subject — hunting game — appeals broadly across genres.


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