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Musicians and Soldiers

Valentin de Boulogne French

ca. 1625–27

Not on view

The seventeenth-century scholar Robert Burton wrote, "Music is a sovereign remedy against despair and Melancholy." Two of the figures have been adapted from the allegorical Musical Party (on view nearby), but the composition is more open and dispersed: the figures appear to be absorbed in their own world. Rather than an allegory of the four ages of man, the picture suggests the inadequacy of wine and music to dispel a melancholic state. With what gravity the gypsy beats her tambourine!

Musicians and Soldiers, Valentin de Boulogne (French, Coulommiers-en-Brie 1591–1632 Rome), Oil on canvas — Due to rights restrictions, this image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Title: Musicians and Soldiers

Artist: Valentin de Boulogne (French, Coulommiers-en-Brie 1591–1632 Rome)

Date: ca. 1625–27

Medium: Oil on canvas

Dimensions: 61 × 78 3/4 in. (155 × 200 cm)

Classification: Paintings

Credit Line: Musée des Beaux-Arts de Strasbourg, Musées de Strasbourg

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