HOLGER HVITFELD JERICHAU (1861-1900 Lot n° 15

RODSTENSEJEE, WITH COUNT EMIL VON HOLSTEIN-RATHLOU (THE ARTIST'S BROTHER-IN-LAWsigned l.r. Holger H Jerichau oil on canvas 40 x 57cm. / 15¾ x 22½in. Provenance: Private Collection, Denmark The subject of the present work was one of Denmark's grandest and most extravagant aristocrats of the latter half of the 19th century. Born to wealthy parents, Emil (1849-1919) was known for his lavish lifestyle and his extensive seafaring, spending years aboard his ships in Danish waters and as far away as Alexandria. He was known for his parties and hunts for friends and peers, who included the Danish Royals. He had a particular passion for hunting, which was part of the reason he purchased the 14th century estate of Rodstensejee, in Jutland (Northeast Denmark) . He was made Court Huntsman to Christian IX in 1878, co-founded the Danish Hunting Association, served on its board between 1892-1897 and became a Knight of Dannebrog in 1896. Emil married Sophie Dagmar Elisabeth Jerichau, the artist's sister, in 1878, and the present work could either be a wedding gift or a later commission by the artist's brother-in-law. A further portrait of von Holstein-Rathlou by Elisabeth Jerichau Baumann, the present artist's mother, sold at Bruun Rasmussen, Copenhagen, 2011.