This work has been selected by scholars as being culturally important, and is part of the knowledge base of civilization as we know it. This work was reproduced from the original artifact, and remains as true to the original work as possible. Therefore, you will see the original copyright references, library stamps (as most of these works have been housed in our most important libraries around the world), and other notations in the work.This work is in the public domain in the United States of America, and possibly other nations. Within the United States, you may freely copy and distribute this work, as no entity (individual or corporate) has a copyright on the body of the work.As a reproduction of a historical artifact, this work may contain missing or blurred pages, poor pictures, errant marks, etc. Scholars believe, and we concur, that this work is important enough to be preserved, reproduced, and made generally available to the public. We appreciate your support of the preservation process, and thank you for being an important part of keeping this knowledge alive and relevant.

Excerpt from Catalogue of a Collection of Paintings by Dutch Masters of the Seventeenth Century The golden era of Dutch painting is compressed into the brief period between 162 5 and I 670, although three genera tions of masters lent their lustre to it - Frans Hals, born in I Rembrandt, born in I 606, and Jan Vermeer, born in 1632. If the art of the first generation owered late, and that of the third had an early close, it is due to the fact that a certain period - about two decades - was necessary for the development and establishment of a national art, and that in 1670 the French school made its victorious appearance, completely submerging the native painting. Unusually late was Hals' development, and Jan Vermeer died early in I 677. In this manner Rembrandt's productive era embraces almost completely that of the three generations, whose art but for his in uence could never have attained SO rich a development. Holland's contribution, during this golden age, to the universal progress of painting lay primarily in the fact that she freed it from its dependence upon the Church. About the Publisher Forgotten Books publishes hundreds of thousands of rare and classic books. Find more at www.forgottenbooks.com This book is a reproduction of an important historical work. Forgotten Books uses state-of-the-art technology to digitally reconstruct the work, preserving the original format whilst repairing imperfections present in the aged copy. In rare cases, an imperfection in the original, such as a blemish or missing page, may be replicated in our edition. We do, however, repair the vast majority of imperfections successfully; any imperfections that remain are intentionally left to preserve the state of such historical works."