Twee liggende buffels onder een juk gespannen

Twee liggende buffels onder een juk gespannen by Claude Lorrain is a characteristic example of the French master's detailed studies from life, executed primarily in ink on paper sometime between 1630 and 1640. Classified as a drawing, the work contrasts sharply with the sweeping, idealized classical landscapes for which Lorrain is most famously known. Here, the artist focuses intently on a humble, rustic scene: two heavily built buffaloes resting on the ground, still restrained by the heavy wooden yoke across their necks.

The technique demonstrates Lorrain’s observational prowess, utilizing quick, expressive lines to capture the bulk and texture of the animals’ hides and the weight of their bodies. These types of preparatory sketches provided the essential real-world detail that anchored his larger, more elaborate compositions in reality. Working predominantly in Rome, Lorrain was instrumental in shaping the aesthetics of 17th-century European landscape painting, and his numerous drawings depicting the life and agricultural animals of the Roman Campagna attest to his thorough immersion in his Italian surroundings.

This important sheet resides in the prestigious collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, contributing to the museum's extensive holdings of Old Master drawings and prints. Because of the age and enduring artistic significance of Lorrain's complete body of work, high-resolution images of many of his drawings, including Twee liggende buffels onder een juk gespannen, are often made available through the public domain, ensuring continued accessibility for scholars and art enthusiasts worldwide.