The Sense of Hearing
| Object type | Painting |
| Genre | Allegory |
| Date | 1617-1618 |
| Dimensions | 64 x 109 cm |
| Support | Panel |
| Medium | Oil |
| Collaborators | Peter Paul Rubens |
| Our attribution | Jan Brueghel the Elder |
| Other authorities | Ertz 2008-10, #535 Ertz 1979, #329 |
| Location | Madrid, Spain |
| Collection | Museo del Prado |
| Accession numbers | inv. #1395 |
| Series | The Five Senses |
| Tags | Encyclopedic, Senses, Animals, Parrot, Rubens, Painting Within A Painting, Mariemont, Landscape, Musical instruments |
| External resources | Museo del Prado |
This painting is part of a series of the five sense completed between 1617-1618. Please also see:
A variation of this with the same central figures reconfigured attributed to Jan Brueghel the Younger (panel, 57.2 x 88 cm) sold London, Sotheby's, Jul 10, 2002, #49. A signed copy of this variation by JBII ("J. Breugel") with a clothed nymph (copper, 59.3 x 90.2 cm) sold London, Christie's, Dec. 13, 2000 #8.
Good copy sold London (Christie's 22.iv.88 #61), panel, 68.3 x 113: in this one, according to the catalogue, the castle of Mariemont is mysteriously shown without the extensions begun in 1608: those extensions are shown in the original. How could that have happened? Also in this copy the inscription on music stand with A & I's names is lacking. This is only copy in which main figure is nude; why? She looks like she might be by Van Balen, as does the putto, Van Balen trying kind of to imitate Rubens but not trying very hard.
Another version is attributed by Ertz to Jan the Younger. It's part of series of 5 full copies: Jan the Younger, cat. #180, panel, 68.5 x 112. In it Mariemont is in its extended state.
A copy with a clothed nymph (panel, 66 x 108 cm), sold at auction in Vienna (J.C. von Klinkoseh), April 2, 1889, #27. Part of a series, see discussion for The Sense of Touch. Another with a clothed main figure on art market in 1941: panel, 31 x 48 in. Another really bad one, with many simplifications for an incompetent copyist, sold Paris (Charpentier 3.xii.57), panel, 75 x 115.
Diaz Padron identifies the central figure as Venus although Speth-Holterhoff had called her Euterpe.
Picture of Orpheus on back wall is related to much earlier work by Jan, currently in French private collection and dated 1600 (Ertz 2008-10 #378, my 00020). Query did Jan still have drawing for that earlier work or how did he reconstruct it.
The landscape seen from the window here in repeated in the painting of Taste, Touch, and Hearing (Ertz 1979 #333).