Title: The Penitent Magdalen – A Woman Reading by Lamplight

Artist: After Godfried Schalcken (Dutch, 1643–1706)
Medium: Oil on Canvas
Dimensions: 64.5 × 54 cm
Signature: Unsigned
Condition: Overall good
Provenance: Based on a smaller original (26 × 21 cm) by Schalcken in the Staatliches Museum Schwerin, Germany, since the 18th century.

Description:

This oil on canvas painting is an interpretation of Godfried Schalcken’s The Penitent Magdalen, depicting a woman reading by lamplight—a subject emblematic of Schalcken’s signature style, which focused on dramatic candlelit scenes and masterful chiaroscuro (light and shadow contrasts).

The original Schwerin Museum version, executed on a smaller panel, is a prime example of Schalcken’s fascination with intimate, nocturnal lighting. This larger adaptation maintains the soft illumination, warm glow, and contemplative atmosphere, characteristic of the Dutch Golden Age master's work.