DINGEMAN VAN DER HAAGEN (Dordrecht, 1610/1620 - before 1682) Players of Morra Oil on canvas, 112X156 cm Provenance: John T. Dorrance Collection New York, Sotheby's, 11 January 1990, lot 47a (as attributed to Jan van Bylert) New York, Sotheby's, 1 June 1990, lot 69 (as Dingeman van der Haagen) Rome, private collection The painting bore an attribution to Jan van Bylert and had a companion canvas exhibited at Sotheby's, New York, 12 January 1989, lot 62, itself from the Metropolitan Museum, New York (see the documents attached to the condition report). The work was later re-exhibited on 1 June 1990, lot 69, and was correctly attributed to the hand of Dingeman van der Haagen. Of this artist we know that he was an apprentice in the Antwerp Guild of St. Luke between 1632 and 1633 and that he was appointed master between 1647 and 1648 when he returned to his home town. It should be noted that Haagen's style is close to that of Bylert's and the canvas under examination finds references to early production, differing, for example, from the Card Players in the Hermitage Museum, which reveals a Baroque layout and taste. In our case, a greater adherence to Caravaggio's culture of Roman matrix is perceived in virtue of the subject, narrative tenor and physiognomies. Therefore, the painting must be considered a valuable testimony and enriches the artist's meagre catalogue. We thank Tommaso Borgogelli for confirming the attribution.