Czech Republic - Jan Jakub Hartmann

The painting depicted on this beautiful stamp has been made by the famous artist of Czech Republic and is from National Art Gallery, Prague. The miniature sheet shows painting 'Allegory of Water' by Jan Jakub Hartmann. He belongs to the painters who in the course of the second half of the 17th century specialised in landscape painting. Based on the Dutch landscape models mainly from the late 16th century, his concept of landscape painting was at his time rather archaistic. He worked together with his sons František Antonín and Václav Jan. Their paintings are not signed and were created by cooperation of all the painters. The postage stamp features a cutting of the painting Allegory of Water which is the counterpart painting of the Allegory of Earth. The paintings come from the series The Four Elements. They are painted on copper plates and belong to the best of Hartmanns' production. The scheme of the landscape on the painting Allegory of Water, based on a contrast between the darker rich forest and the lighted view of the river scene with an ample crowd broken into smaller groups, numerous ships, fish and sea fruit is at the same time an inconspicuous picture of the Biblical scene of Christ's miraculous fishing. The miniature sheet which includes this postage stamp features almost the whole painting Allegory of Water. Date of issue 5.11.2008