The Montias Database of 17th Century Dutch Art Inventories

Spranger, Gommer		printer-friendly view
Inventory #	305
Archive	Gemeentearchief Amsterdam
Call Number	WK 5073/962
Date	1638/02/09
City	Amsterdam
Country	Nederland
Type	Orphan Chamber
Purpose	auction sale
Family Name	Spranger
Owner Name	Spranger, Gommer
Life Dates	1577 |d 1637/10/12
Marriage Date	1613/08/29; 1622/05/29; 1630/04/09
Type of Ceremony	K
Occupation	Merchant (largescale)
Residence	Ooster Voorburchwal in Amsterdam
Religion	Reformed
Introduction	Den 9e februarij 1638 zijn de naervolgende printen, teeckeningen, schilderijen achtergelaten bij Gommer Spranger vercocht.
Commentary	Gommer Mattheusz. Spranger was born in Antwerp in 1577 and died in Amsterdam in 1637. As early as 1597, he was the agent of the Heester and Van Uffelen families of traders in the Kola peninsula of Russia (Wijnroks, Handel tussen Rusland en de Nederlanden 1560-1640, p. 260). In Amsterdam, he was a merchant, first in the Bantamstraet, then on the O.Z. Voorburchwal in den Lupart. He married Maria de Pickere in 1613, Catharina de Raet in 1622, and finally Susanna Mostart on 9 April 1630 (she was the daughter of Daniel Mostart I and Bertijnken Bachers) (Elias, Vroedschap, p. 761). He was the brother of Adriaen Spranger, merchant in Cadiz, and Jochem Spranger, merchant in Sevilla (Wijnroks, op.cit. p. 261). In addition, he was the brother of Mattheus Spranger II (cited below). On 3 March 1613, Gommer Spranger and Maria Thibouts de Pickere signed a pre-nuptial contract. His uncle, the cloth finisher Lucas van Salinger assisted him (Wijnroks, op.cit. pp. 260-1). On 10 February 1617, Gommer Spranger presented his two children, Matheus, 18 months old, and Constantia, two months old, whose late mother was Maria de Pickere and declared that the two children had 14,000 f. from their mother's inheritance in addition to the clothes and jewels of the deceased which amounted to 4,500 f. In her testament Maria de Pickere had cited the children's uncle Pieter Coeymans and an uncle by marriage Leonard Rans (married to Constantia Coeymans (Wijnroks, op. cit., p.263). He remarried with Catharina de Raet in 1622 and with Susanna Mostaert, the daughter of Daniel Mostart I, on 22 April 1630. In 1631, Gommer Spranger, with his wife and children, was taxed 350 f (Kohier, fol. 132, p. 31). (For more biographical details about Gommer Spranger and his close relatives, see the NOTES to R 31375 of Montias2; Daniel Mostart I was the father of Daniel Mostart II, city secretary, of R 21940). The death inventory of Gommer Spranger was taken on 1-5 January 1637 (NA 1412, deel 32(37), Not. F. Bruyningh). In 1644, Matheus Spranger, the brother of Gommer, declared that he and his sister had duly received their part of the inheritance. As guardians over the children were named Jeronimus Rans of INVNO 1334 and Matheus Halewijn of INVNO 257. At the sales of March and April 1638, the prints and drawings alone brought 1638 f. The records of the sale of Gommer Spranger's paintings have not been preserved, if the sale was ever held. It is possible, however, that the sum cited on the back page of Register 5073/962 of the Orphan Chamber, namely 5707 f. 7 st. included the paintings. Note also that paintings by Bartholomeus Spranger in the death inventory of Maerten van Halewijn, who was an important buyer at the sale of drawings and prints, had been bought at the Spranger auction of paintings. Note that if each print in lots containing multiple prints (e.g. 120 or more) was inputted as a single record, the ICNT would rise from 1119 to about 1700.
Notary	Daniel Jansz. van Beuningen
Total Value	5707 |d 7 st.
Art Value	1638 |d 5 st.
# of Items	1383
Montias1 #	224