# Cornelis Ploos van Amstel artist context and auction value notes

Canonical page: https://appraisily.com/artist/cornelis-ploos-van-amstel/
Profile generated: 2026-05-26T13:44:00.000Z
Quality: high confidence, strong sources

## Artist identity

- Nationality: Dutch
- Movements: 18th-century Dutch art
- Common media: oil painting, printmaking (engraving and etching), watercolor, drawing

## About Cornelis Ploos van Amstel

Cornelis Ploos van Amstel (1726–1798) was a Dutch painter, printmaker, engraver, watercolorist, and art collector active in Amsterdam during the second half of the eighteenth century. Best remembered for his innovations in reproductive printmaking, he developed a technique that allowed etched and engraved plates to closely replicate the appearance of original drawings by Dutch Golden Age masters. Ploos van Amstel was also a prolific publisher of drawing manuals and anatomical guides for artists, reflecting his commitment to art education and technical craft. Beyond his own creative work, he assembled a significant collection of drawings and paintings, and operated as an art dealer. His varied roles—draftsman, etcher, copyist, merchant, and collector—place him at the center of the eighteenth-century Dutch art world, where connoisseurship and reproductive media were increasingly valued.

## Common works and media

Ploos van Amstel's most widely encountered works include reproductive engravings and etchings made after drawings and paintings by seventeenth-century Dutch masters. He produced watercolor copies and original drawings, and published illustrated manuals on drawing technique and artistic anatomy. Oil paintings by his hand exist but are comparatively rare. His published print series, issued incrementally to subscribers, constitute a significant portion of his surviving output and are held in major print rooms and museum collections.

## Market and appraisal context

Works by Cornelis Ploos van Amstel most commonly appear at auction as reproductive prints and print series after Old Master compositions, which represent his principal output. Original watercolors, drawings, and oil paintings by his hand are less frequently encountered. Collectors should distinguish between his original artworks and his facsimile reproductive prints, as attribution and medium significantly affect value. Condition, impression quality, and whether a print is a lifetime or later state are important considerations. His drawing manuals and anatomical publications also surface occasionally in book and print sales.

## Appraisily data basis

Appraisily artist pages combine structured artist identity research from authority files and institutional databases with auction records, sale dates, realized prices, and comparable lot data when those records are available. For Cornelis Ploos van Amstel, identity and biographical data are grounded in the RKD Netherlands Institute for Art History, Getty ULAN, VIAF, and Wikidata authority records.

## Sources

- Wikidata: https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q2541552
- Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cornelis_Ploos_van_Amstel
- Getty Vocabulary Program: https://vocab.getty.edu/page/ulan/500004484
- VIAF: https://viaf.org/viaf/20484255/
- Library of Congress: https://id.loc.gov/authorities/names/n81014452
- RKD - Netherlands Institute for Art History: https://rkd.nl/en/explore/artists/63882