Peasants Loading Hay
17th century
Medium
Pen and brown and black ink, with watercolor, over black chalk; framing line in pen and brown ink
Dimensions
Overall: 3 x 5 11/16 in. (7.6 x 14.5 cm)
Classification
Drawings
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Anonymous Gift, 1999
Accession Number
1999.531
Tags
Art Historical Context
Hendrick Avercamp's *Peasants Loading Hay a delicate 17th-century drawing the Dutch Golden Age, captures a rural scene alive with everyday labor. Created around the early 1600s, it depicts peasants energetically loading hay onto carriages, accompanied by animals and human figures in harmonious activity. Avercamp, a masterful Dutch artist renowned for his lively genre scenes, often portrayed ordinary folk in detailed vignettes that evoke the vibrancy of peasant life, blending observation with narrative charm. Executed on a modest scale—measuring just 3 x 5 11/16 inches—this work showcases Aver...
About the Artist
Hendrick Avercamp · 1585–1634
Dutch painter, best-known for winter landscapes and marine paintings. His lively paintings and drawings were enormously popular. Avercamp was hearing-impaired.