The Return of the Herd

Pieter Bruegel the Elder

1565 · Oil on oak panel · Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna

Size4:3 ratio

Frame

$79Unframed print · made to order

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Complete the setHangs well with these two

This print

The Return of the Herd

Children's Games

Haymaking

3 × $79 at 32 × 24 in, unframed = $237 → $213.30 as a set · 10% included · free shipping

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Giclée-printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper

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About this work

Artist: Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525–1569)
Year: 1565
Medium: Oil on oak panel
Original size: 117 × 159 cm
Collection: Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna
Movement: Northern Renaissance
Series: The Seasons (1565)

Herdsmen drive their cattle home down a hillside towards a village in late autumn; the trees are almost bare, and beyond the river valley rise steep, rocky mountains under a dark, gathering sky. It belongs to the series on the times of the year that Bruegel painted in Antwerp in 1565 for the merchant Nicolaes Jonghelinck, of which five survive, and stands for the months of October and November. The Alpine scenery recalls the drawings Bruegel made on his journey through the Alps to Italy in the 1550s. Traces of his signature remain at the lower left. Like The Gloomy Day and The Hunters in the Snow, it passed with the series in 1594 from the city of Antwerp to Archduke Ernst, then to Emperor Rudolf II and to the collection of Archduke Leopold Wilhelm. The three Vienna panels hang together in the Kunsthistorisches Museum; Haymaking is in Prague and The Harvesters in New York.

This print reproduces the whole work, uncropped, from a high-resolution scan of the original. The original is in the public domain.

Where it works

Cattle driven down an autumn hillside past bare trees towards a winding river and craggy mountains, russet, olive and slate, for a living room, study or hallway at 32×24 in natural wood. A sage, warm grey or rust wall; it pairs with The Hay Wain.

Style, size & framing detail

Style: Northern Renaissance painting
Era: 16th century (1565)
Orientation: Landscape
Mood: calm
Rooms: living room, hallway or entryway, study or library, dining room
Good gift for: housewarming, art lovers

Size. We'd hang this one at 32×24. Prints at 16×12, 24×18, 32×24 in — 16×12 for a shelf, desk or a gallery-wall grid; 24×18 above a console or sideboard; 32×24 as the statement piece above a sofa or headboard.

Framing. The gallery ground is part of the print, so frame it without a mat — black suits the deep tones of this period; natural wood lightens it.

Pairing. Pairs as a set of three with other famous painting prints (10% off three or more).

Details & materials

• Restored in-house from the original painting — cleaned and colour-trued at museum resolution • Heavyweight matte fine-art paper, giclée printed at 300 DPI • Sizes: 16×12, 24×18, 32×24 in; every size also available framed • Framed option: wood frame in black or natural wood, 12 mm wide and 22 mm deep, with a plexiglass front and no mat; the print is mounted inside and the frame's outside measures the listed size • Made to order; colours may vary slightly from screen

Shipping & returns

Printed after you order at the facility nearest you, then shipped. Standard delivery is free and takes 4–9 business days from order to door in the US, UK and EU (up to 10 elsewhere); Express takes 4–6 business days. Because each print is made to order we don't take change-of-mind returns, but if it arrives damaged or flawed we'll reprint or refund it — no return needed. Full policy →

Is this the whole painting, or a crop?

The whole work, uncropped. The image fills the print at the painting's own proportions; nothing is trimmed to fit a frame.

Is The Return of the Herd in the public domain?

Yes. Pieter Bruegel the Elder (1525–1569) died more than 70 years ago and the work was published before 1929, so the painting itself is public domain. This print is a reproduction made from a high-resolution scan of the original, which is held by Kunsthistorisches Museum.

What is it printed on?

Heavyweight matte fine-art paper with pigment inks, made to order in 16×12, 24×18 and 32×24 inches; every size is also offered framed in black or natural wood, with plexiglass and no mat. Colours are matched to the scan, not brightened.

When was The Return of the Herd painted, and in what medium?

The Return of the Herd dates from 1565 and was made in oil on oak panel; the original measures 117 × 159 cm.

What size works above a sofa or bed?

Across a three-seat sofa or a queen bed, 32×24 is the size that reads as one statement piece; 24×18 suits a narrower wall or a pair. For The Return of the Herd we'd choose 32×24. It is a landscape print, wider than it is tall, at the painting's own proportions.

About this design

The Return of the Herd (Pieter Bruegel the Elder) — The Return of the Herd · Pieter Bruegel the Elder · 1565. This is a fine-art reproduction of a public-domain masterwork, shown whole and uncropped on a gallery ground, printed to order on heavyweight matte fine-art paper. Every size is offered unframed or framed in black or natural wood. Part of the Madten Fine Art Collection. — — — Printed to order and shipped by our production partner, Gelato.

Buy with confidence

The Madten promise

Gallery-grade archival giclée. Rich pigment inks on heavyweight fine-art paper (or gallery-wrapped canvas) — built to last, not a poster-shop print.

Arrives perfect or we reprint it — free. Every piece is made to order; if it shows up damaged or flawed we remake it, no return needed.

Free worldwide shipping. Made & shipped from the facility nearest you — most orders arrive in 4–9 business days.

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