The 7 x 11ft (2.13 x 3.36m) canvas was catalogued as a work from the studio of the 17th century Flemish painter Frans Snyders and priced at €20,000. The original, which belongs to a series of four market paintings by the artist, belongs to the Hermitage in St Petersburg. Another studio version can be found in the Louvre.
According to current opinion, the painting in the Cologne auction was a direct copy of the Parisian canvas. In 1980 it was sold to a Swiss collector at an auction in Bern and was later passed on to a German collector who now consigned it to Lempertz.
When the bidding started, there were plenty of contenders, most of whom dropped out when a bidder in the room took on an equally determined competitor on the telephone. The latter gave up the struggle at €215,000 (£183,760). The new owner preferred to remain anonymous, but he must have plenty of wall space.
