Eleven boys and three goats

Art Historical Context

This charming etching, created between 1646 and 1654, captures a lively scene of eleven boys playing with three goats, complete with the energetic presence of drums. Attributed to the Flemish artist Pieter van Avont and rendered in the etching medium, the small print (just under six by eight inches) reflects the 17th-century taste for genre scenes that celebrated childhood innocence and rural life. Van Avont, known for his detailed depictions of children and animals in pastoral settings, often infused such works with a sense of joyful movement and natural harmony. Although the print is explicitly noted as not by the celebrated etcher Wenceslaus Hollar, it belongs to a tradition of reproductive prints that helped spread Flemish artistic ideas across Europe during the Baroque period. The compact format made these images accessible for private collectors, turning everyday moments—like children drumming alongside playful goats—into objects of delight and moral reflection on youth and simplicity. Acquired by the Metropolitan Museum in 1951 through the Elisha Whittelsey Fund, the work offers modern viewers a window into mid-17th-century European print culture, where modest sheets like this one preserved fleeting scenes of play for generations to enjoy.

About the Artist

Wenceslaus Hollar|Pieter van Avont|Pieter van Avont · 1607–1677

Wenceslaus Hollar (1607-1677) was a prolific Bohemian etcher who became one of the most accomplished printmakers of the seventeenth century. Born in Prague, he trained under Matthäus Merian in Frankfurt before entering the service of Thomas Howard, Earl of Arundel, in 1636. Hollar spent most of his career in England, where he produced approximately 2,740 etchings documenting an extraordinary range...