x ADRIAEN VAN OSTADE 337 a glass which he holds in his left. He speaks to the man opposite him, who sits on the window seat, smoking a clay pipe. Behind the first man another peasant turns away from the table to blow his nose. To the left of him are a woman and a peasant, and behind them stands a man with a pewter pot. In the right background two children play near a chair. A dog lies asleep in front. Signed, and dated 1656 ; panel, 14 inches by I2| inches. Mentioned by Waagen, ii. 13. Exhibited at the British Institution, London, 1826-7. In the Royal collection, Buckingham Palace, London, No. 152 ; it was in the Royal collection, 1829 (Sm.). 647. PEASANTS DRINKING AND SMOKING IN AN INTERIOR. The nearest man stands with his back to the spectator, holding a pipe in his right hand behind him. Signed in full ; panel, 10^ inches by 9 inches. Exhibited at the Royal Academy Winter Exhibition, London, 1890, No. 95. In the collection of Mrs. Stephenson Clarke, London. 648. FOUR PEASANTS IN A BARN. Signed in full, and dated 164-. In the collection of C. T. D. Crews, London. 649. PEASANTS AT AN INN. An interior with ten figures. In the foreground six peasants, smoking and drinking, are grouped round a table. To the left are two windows, near together. Beside the second window three men sit at a table, attended by a woman who fills a glass. [Compare 676/1] 1 8 inches by 15 inches. Exhibited at the London Guildhall Art Gallery, 1894, No. 88. In the collection of A. Gibbs, London. 650. PEASANTS IN AN INTERIOR. Sm. 133. Six figures are grouped round a table in the centre. The nearest man, in profile to the right, sits with legs crossed on a three-legged stool, holding his pipe in his right hand, and looks at the spectator. Behind him to the left an old man leans back in his chair and lifts a pewter pot to his lips ; he speaks to a woman standing on the right. To the right of her, on the other side of the table, sits a man who fills his pipe. Beside him sits a fourth man, a stout fellow, facing the spectator, who blows out a cloud of smoke to the right. He speaks to a fifth man who stands near, in profile to the left, and leans on the back of a chair. At the stout man's feet lies a dog. In the right background is a chimney-piece. On the left a staircase leads to the upper floor. " This picture was painted in the master's best time, 1663, and possesses all those properties for which he is so justly esteemed ; the composition is excellent ; the drawing correct ; the colouring brilliant and clear throughout, and of the highest excellence in the finishing " (Sm.). Signed in full on the chimney-piece, and dated 1663 ; panel, I2| inches by 1 6 inches. Mentioned by Buchanan, Memoirs of Painting, i. 313 ; and by Waagen, ii. 201. VOL. Ill Z
