Lot Essay
Ursula Härting (Frans Francken II, Freren, 1989, pp. 16 and 266-7, nos. 133-4, fig. 8) lists two other versions of the same subject, which she attributes entirely to Frans Francken II. She notes the unusual iconography used by the artist in depicting three murdered babies to refer to the Massacre of the Innocents. The picture in Florence also depicts the Miracle of the Statue. Unlike the other versions, the present picture, however, is painted in horizontal format giving more prominence to the detailed landscape, here attributed to Abraham Govaerts.