1607—Dresden, Germany: A depiction of a portion of a procession features a trombone player and 3 shawm players on horseback (see below image; public domain) (Dresden, Sachsische Landesbibliothek).

1686—Amsterdam, Netherlands: The organ for Amsterdam’s Westerkerk (west church) is built. Included on the organ shutters painted by Gerard de Lairesse (1641-1711) is a depiction of a trombone (see detail and full image below; public domain).

The timeline now features nine Belgian (or Flemish, if you prefer) paintings within the short span of approximately 30 years (c. 1610-c. 1640) that include trombone. They are similar in several respects. Several of the artists, most notably Rubens and Breughel, are well known in art history. With the exception of Alsloot’s Procession (1615-16), which documents a literal event, nearly all of the paintings incorporate overt symbolism in the form of mythology and/or allegory. In terms of the trombone, one of the most striking things is that, while the paintings all include depictions of the instrument, none of them except the Procession show the trombone actually being played. The instrument is obviously being used as a symbol.

_______________

c. 1610—Belgium: Hendrick de Clerck’s painting, Minerva and the Muses, includes a trombone resting on some foliage in the foreground of the painting (see bottom-left of below image; click for larger image; public domain).

c. 1610—Antwerp, Belgium: Hendrick van Balen’s painting, The Banquet of the Gods, includes a trombone resting on the ground among several other instruments (see bottom right of below detail; public domain image).

c. 1615—Antwerp, Belgium: Hendrick van Balen’s painting, Minerva among the Muses, on the cover of a virginal belonging to Queen Maria Kazimiera Sobieski, features a trombone among several instruments resting on the ground. The trombone is somewhat unusual because of the double loop of tubing on the back of the instrument, similar to the one portrayed by Brueghel and Rubens in Allegory of Hearing (1617-18). Queen Maria, originally from Poland, marries King James Stuart and spends most of her life in Rome. Hendrick van Balen, the artist, is a mannerist from the Antwerp School (see below image) (source: wikimedia commons).

1615-16—Brussels, Belgium: Archduchess Isabella visits Brussels and subsequently commissions several paintings to portray the related celebrations. Denis van Alsloot, painter for the archdukes of Brussels, depicts a “procession of guilds.” The “loud” instruments pictured, which include a trombone, cornett, curtal, and 3 shawms, presumably constitute the civic wind band of Brussels. They occupy a place of honor between the relics and the statue (Denis van Alsloot, Procession en l’honneur de Notre-Dame du Sablon a Bruxelles le 31 mai,Museo Prado, Madrid) (see below detail—click for larger image; Lesure 94-95; Forney, Antwerp 363; Whitwell, Baroque 181; Wangermée, vol. 1 241; ). Public domain image.

c. 1617—Antwerp, Belgium: Hendrick van Balen and Jan Brueghel collaborate on a painting called An Allegory of the Five Senses, which includes a trombone among several instruments in the foreground (see below detail; public domain) (Haeften, pl. 8). For other depictions of the trombone by the same painter, see c. 1610 (Banquet of the Gods), c. 1615 (Minerva among the Muses), and c. 1625 (Allegory of Music). 1617-1618—Antwerp, Belgium: Jan Brueghel the Elder and Peter Paul Rubens collaborate on a series of paintings on the subject of the 5 senses. The Sense of Hearing or Allegory of Hearing depicts a trombone among the many instruments in the room. All of the paintings in the series are “portrayed against a backdrop of princely collections that together seem to paint an idealized picture of the court of the Habsburg rulers of the Southern Netherlands, the archdukes Albert and Isabella, whose castles in and near Brussels are depicted in the distance” (see below detail; public domain) (Woollett, 91-92; Museo del Prado, Madrid). c. 1625—Belgium: A painting attributed to Jan van Kessel, Hendrik van Balen, and Jan Brueghel titled Allegory of Music features depictions of numerous instruments, including trombone (see below detail; public domain) (Wangermée vol. I, 292; Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Musée municipal). 1625-1630—Belgium: The Royal Palace at Brussels, a painting attributed to Sebastian Vranckx and Jan Brueghel the Younger, includes a depiction of a trombone. The trombone rests on the ground, along with a dulcian, near an ensemble of 2 voices and 3 strings that is informally performing outdoors (see below image; public domain) (Kenyon de Pascual, Two Contributions). c. 1640—Antwerp, Belgium: Jan van Kessel’s Allegory of Hearing depicts a room with numerous instruments, including a trombone leaning against a stool (see below detail; public domain). The image is similar to a painting on which the artist collaborated with Hendrik van Balen and Jan Brueghel (see c. 1625, above).

The full painting (the bottom image, below) can be purchased from Superstock and is helpful because it provides context for the subject matter.

The middle detail can be purchased at AllPosters, among other places.

The closest detail is nice because you can see the small cracks in the paint, an effect that has its own beauty (see this detail of the Mona Lisa). The effect actually has a name: craquelure, or the pattern of cracks that develops as paint ages.

As I mention in an article called How to Hold a Sackbut (yes, quite the silly title), the bell of the angel’s trombone appears to have been retouched, resulting in an unlikely bell flare. If you look closely you can see a hint of what appears to be the original more gradual bell flare under the dark gray-green paint.

Here’s the timeline entry, plus the three views:

c. 1530—Musical Angels, a detail from Assumption of the Virgin by Frei Carlos, a Flemish monk who worked in Portugal, depicts angels playing trombone, shawm, and pipe (or recorder) (see below image; public domain) (Lisbon, National Museum of Ancient Art).

I recently found two more versions of the woodcuts. One of them is a set of the original 1526 prints that was hand colored in 1765. The full set, digitized by the University of Graz in Austria, can be found here. The other version is a Spanish “copy” of the prints, c. 1700. Some of the Spanish images are relatively close copies, while others depart from the original in all but the most general sense. The artist for this version is unknown. An online copy of the full set is hosted by Biblioteca Digital Hispánica here.

Hand-colored set of original woodcuts (1765):

Spanish version of woodcuts by unknown artist (c. 1700):

c. 1560-80—Nuremberg, Germany: Municipal Wind Players, an image from the Heldt’schen Trachtenbuch, shows a trombone playing in a wind band. The musicians wear the costume and badges of civic musicians (see below image; public domain) (Berlin, Kunstbibliothek).

16th century—Mexico: An anonymous painting in the church of San Esteban in Tizatlan, Tlaxcala, depicts a choir of angel musicians consisting of 3 shawms and a trombone (see below image; public domain) (Starner 110). The players all read from a single music stand. A wider view of the image can be seen here or here (see upper-right).1526—In the famous series of woodcuts titled The Triumph of Maximilian, executed primarily by artist Hans Burgkmair, one image (Plates 25-26) depicts a wagon transporting the Emperor’s Hofkapelle (court band), with cornett, trombone, and a number of singers, all the performers reading from a large music desk. See below image (Burgkmair, Triumph 5-6, plate 26; public domain). 1564—Seville, Spain: At the Seville Cathedral, a bronze medallion by Juan Marin and Bautista Vazquez portrays 2 trombones performing with a cornett and 2 shawms. The 5 players are all gathered around a single music stand (see below image; public domain) (Kreitner, Minstrels in Spanish Churches). c. 1575—Pieter de Witte’s painting, David Singing God’s Praise, features trombone among a mixed consort of angel-musicians. The angel-trombonist appears to be reading from music held by another angel. The upper half of the painting (see below image) is meant to depict Saint Cécile and angels. The lower half, not shown, depicts angels performing with David (Haarlem, Frans Hals Museum, photo A. Dingjan; Pieter Fischer 22) (public domain image). Several subsequent copies of the painting on various media retain the same basic image (see 16th century timeline).

1578—Antwerp, Belgium: A set of masses by George de La Hele includes an image–an initial D in front of a group of cherub musicians–that features a rear-facing trombone being played by a cherub (also rear-facing) (see below image; public domain; Wangermée vol. 1 167). The wind players all appear to be reading from a single central music volume.1595—Antwerp, Belgium: Philippe Galle’s copperplate engraving, after a work by Johannes Stradanus (Jan van der Straat), features trombone performing in a sacred setting, during the celebration of a Mass. One trombone is pictured in the immediate foreground, while another, possibly an alto trombone, is shown very near the music desk. The performers appear to be reading from a central music desk (see below image; public domain) (Salmen, Musikleben im 16 183; Naylor 10). 1600s—Thaleia, Muse of Comic Poetry, an anonymous engraving, depicts a trombonist reading from music held up by a cherub or putto. The caption says, “If our story is great, or if it is a comedy of life, Our story, even after it has been told does not satisfy God, It does not create the eternal well-being which pleases us; And expressed it does not include the praises of God” (see below image; public domain) (Naylor 96).1609—Rome, Italy: Guido Reni’s Gloria d’angeli, a fresco located in S. Gregorio Magno, Cappella di S. Silvia, includes 2 trombones (see below 2 details; public domain) (Cavalli, pl. 28 and 32; Pepper, pl. 30). The musicians read from leaves of music draped over the edge of the balcony.c. 1615—Cislago, Italy: The Church of Santa Maria della Neve contains an anonymous fresco lunette featuring several angel musicians, including a trombonist. The 3 wind players on the left play from music held up by a cherub or putto. The trombone is particularly noteworthy because it is a rear-facing (sometimes called “over-the-shoulder”) instrument, an unusual configuration for this early date (see below image; public domain) (Morandi; Farioli). For another early rear-facing instrument, see 1578 in the 16th century timeline, where a cherub-trombonist is featured. In later centuries, particularly the 19th century, rear-facing trombones become much more common; the 19th century timeline includes at least 9 such images. c. 1629—Venice, Italy: Veronese artist Fra Semplice da Verona includes a depiction of a cherub playing trombone in Infant Jesus and Musical Angels, an image framing a pre-existing Madonna in the Convento del Redentore. The trombonist appears to be playing from music held by one of the other cherubs. Other instruments not shown include cornetto, viol, violin, and lute (see detail below) (Portogruaro, plate 37).

1716-1727—Germany: Protestant minister Daniel Pfisterer keeps a personal sketchbook in which he sketches various aspects of his surroundings. Included is a drawing depicting numerous instruments on and around a table. The trombone is on the right (see below image; public domain) (source: Recorder Home Page).

1774-77—Rome, Italy: Giovanni Volpato creates copper engravings of paintings by Giovanni da Udine found on the colonnade of the Loggia of Raphael in the Vatican, originally painted in 1517-1519 (see 16th century timeline). The instruments are grouped in trophies (or decorative clusters), the grouping that features trombone representing a shawm band, a common 16th century ensemble. Although the engravings by Volpato are generally considered good copies, they reflect some 18th-century characteristics, like the round stays on the trombone (see below image; public domain) (Myers, Instrumental Trophies).

1611—Pieter de Witte (also known as Peter Candid) includes an angel playing trombone in his drawing, Euterpe (see bottom-left of below image) (Volk-Knüttel 102).

I am not going to try to come to any real conclusions with this post, but I would suggest the early rear-facing trombone as one possibility. There are at least two iconographical examples of rear-facing trombones from the 17th century or earlier (see here), as well as many others from the 19th century (see here). In the case of the first three examples below with no apparent bells, the bell on a rear-facing instrument could easily be obscured by the player’s head and/or other parts of the image, such as cap, halo, and wings. In the final example, from the 19th century, the bell is very likely obscured by the player’s helmet; there are multiple other examples of rear-facing trombones in iconography of this precise period and region.

c. 1474—Asciano, Italy: Matteo di Giovanni’s The Assumption of the Virgin, the center panel of an altarpiece in S. Agostino, includes what may be an angel-trombonist along with several other angel-musicians. The instrument has what appears to be a slide but no visible bell (see below detail and full image; public domain) (Belán 111).

1503-1529—Spain: Joan Gascó’s painting, God the Father and the nine angelic choirs, includes what appears to be a trombone-playing angel, grouped with 2 other wind-playing angels, although no bell is apparent on the trombone (see below detail and full image below that; public domain) (Ballester).

1598-1606—Valencia, Spain: Bartolomé Matarana paints a fresco of angel musicians in the the church of Real Colegio–Seminario de Corpus Christi that includes what are probably 2 trombones. Only the slide portions are obvious, although possible bell flares can be seen upon close inspection (see details and full image below) (Olson, Angel Musicians).

c. 1850—Brussels, Belgium: Musicien et trompette de cuirassiers, a lithograph by Henri Hendrickx, portrays a Belgian infantry musician playing on what may be a rear-facing trombone, the bell obscured by the player’s helmet (see below image; public domain) (Bibliotheque royale Albert I; Wangermée vol. 2, 263). See other Belgian rear-facing trombones from the same time period at this post: Belgian Military Trombonists.