Artwork
Landscape with a Cart Driven by Bullocks

Landscape with a Cart Driven by Bullocks is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Abraham Begeyn. It dates from 1664 and is held in the collection of the Hermitage Museum.
About this work
Overview
Abraham Begeyn’s 1664 oil painting, Landscape with a Cart Driven by Bullocks, is part of the collection of the State Hermitage Museum. The work presents a rural tableau in which a loaded wagon is pulled by two oxen, while a third ox stands nearby. The scene unfolds under a muted sky, with distant hills receding into the background.
Subject & Meaning
The composition captures a moment of everyday labor, emphasizing the interdependence of humans and draft animals in a 17th‑century countryside. Figures in modest attire pause along the path, some walking, others resting, suggesting a pause in the rhythm of work. A small dog wades in the mud, adding a touch of domestic realism.
Technique & Style
Begeyn employs a loose, gestural brushwork that conveys texture and movement without meticulous detail. Earthy tones of brown, gray and subdued green dominate the palette, reinforcing the natural setting. The handling of light and atmospheric perspective gives the landscape a lived‑in, almost tactile quality.
History & Provenance
Created in 1664, the painting entered the Hermitage’s holdings during the museum’s early acquisitions of Dutch art. Its presence in the Russian collection reflects the broader 18th‑century interest in Dutch genre scenes, which were prized for their depiction of quotidian life.
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