The Blessing of the Bridal Bed by Pieter Brueghel the Younger

Pieter Brueghel the Younger
1565-1636 | Flemish

The Blessing of the Bridal Bed

Oil on panel

Pieter Brueghel the Younger was one of the most famous Flemish painters of the 17th century. Along with his father, Brueghel captured peasant life like no other artist at the time, with exceptionally rich narratives and painterly details. The Blessing of the Bridal Bed is one of the most delightful scenes ever painted by this great artist—and it is the only known example of this subject by Brueghel that survives today.

Many of Brueghel the Younger’s early paintings were adaptations of his father's works. This work of art is a rare exception, inspired instead by the works of his contemporary, Marten van Cleve. The Blessing of the Bridal Bed was reimagined brilliantly by Brueghel with the artist using his characteristic color, detail and wit. While most of Brueghel's wedding scenes depict the outdoor festivities—processions, feasts and dancing—this special work takes place in a private interior, after the festivities had concluded. 

At the right of the composition, a priest blesses the marriage bed for a successful union as the bride looks on anxiously. She clutches a jug, the symbol of her virginity and fertility, as her attendants prepare her for the evening. Meanwhile, the groom bursts unceremoniously through the doorway, still drinking his alcohol from the wedding feast. Flower petals scattered across the floor complete this raucous tableau that is both endlessly charming and utterly humorous.

The warm, earthy palette and Brueghel's masterful attention to texture are on full display: the solid wood dresser, the red-curtained bed, the soft folds of linen and the gleaming copper pans on the wall above. His brushwork reflects the confident, refined style that scholars have associated with his mature period: smooth white highlights, defined contours and a precise rendering of fabric and form. 

Pieter Brueghel the Younger emerged as one of the most successful Flemish Old Masters despite beginning his career in the shadow of his legendary father. Born in Brussels in 1565, he lost his father at the age of five and was raised by his maternal grandmother, who was also an accomplished artist. His detailed allegorical compositions and genre scenes were extraordinarily popular and collected widely, establishing him as one of the 17th century's most important masters of peasant life.

Other examples of Brueghel the Younger's wedding-themed works are held in prestigious museums, including the Royal Museums of Fine Arts of Belgium, the Petit Palais and the Worcester Art Museum, yet none are unique in form or nearly as charming as this masterpiece.

Circa 1620

Panel: 10 3/4” high x 15 1/4” wide (27.3 x 38.7 cm)
Frame: 17” high x 21 1/2” wide x 1 1/8” deep (43.2 x 54.6 x 2.9 cm)

Provenance:
Lunden Collection, Antwerp
Eugen Abresch Collection, Neustadt an der Weinstrasse, 1929
Comtesse d’Escayssac Collection
Private Collection, Europe
Christie’s, London, 16 December 1998, lot 4
De Jonckheere, Paris, 1999
Private Collection
M.S. Rau, New Orleans Literature:
Klaus Ertz, Pieter Brueghel der Jüngere. Die Gemälde mit kritischem Oeuvrekatalog, Lingen, Luca Verlag, Vol. II, 2000, p. 737, no. E1016, p. 697, fig. 582 (illustrated)
Georges Marlier, Pierre Brueghel le Jeune, Brussels, 1969, p. 347
Sandrine Vézilier (et.al.), Fêtes et Kermesses au temps des Brueghel, exh. cat., [Cassel, Musée de Flandre, 16 March to 14 July 2019], Cassel, Snoeck, 2019, p. 194