Atale of three Peters

A work by the artist eventually known as Peter Candid sold handsomely in Munich and, if you're feeling altruistic, there are some worthy appeals to preserve art for the nation

- Huon Mallalieu

AS a small boy, I was fascinated by an old stall-holder in the Strutton Grounds market off Victoria Street, SW1. He seemed to know all the countries of the world, but his knowledge came from books— he had never, in his long life, been even as far as St Paul’s. He was exceptional. In considering our ancestors, it is easy to assume that few, other than the rich, would have travelled far, but, at some periods, that was not really the case. During the European 15th and 16th centuries, for instance, with the exception of the peasantry unless they happened to become soldiers, many people— pilgrims and clerics, merchants and sailors, masons, musicians, artists, as well as armies—were frequently on the move.

Musical and artistic exchanges between Burgundian Flanders and Italy were particularly strong, following or combined with trading and financial links. They became more frequent still when the Duke of Burgundy became King of Spain and Holy Roman Emperor as Charles V. It was natural enough for some of his subjects to move between his many realms, and, indeed, beyond them.

During much of the 16th century, it might have seemed that almost as much Flemish and French as Tuscan was spoken in the studios of Florence. A good example of a peripatetic Flemish artist is Pieter de Witte, who was born in Bruges in about 1548 and was taken to Florence 10 years later when his father, Elias, a weaver, was hired by the new Medici tapestry works and Italianised the family name to Candido.