Lot 333: John Theodore Heins , 1697-1756 Two Women by Candlelight: the Fortune Teller oil on canvas, unframed

signed lower right Heins. Fec. 1750 oil on canvas, unframed

measurements note 30 1/4 by 24 7/8 in.; 76.8 by 63.3 cm.

Of German origin, by 1720 John Theodore Heins had settled in Norwich, England, where he made a career painting portraits of members of prominent local families, such as the Astley family of Melton Constable, Norfolk, who were important patrons of the artist. The Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery holds a large collection of Heins' work.

Heins was also adept at painting allegorical and historical subjects, and, as the present composition demonstrates, nocturnals.