Maritiem Digitaal
collectie zoeksyteem van de maritieme musea
The Merchant Shipping Anchorage off Texel Island with Oude Schild in the Distance
| titel | The Merchant Shipping Anchorage off Texel Island with Oude Schild in the Distance
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| inventarisnummer | BHC0916
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| collectie | Oil Paintings
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| museum | National Maritime Museum, Greenwich
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| datum | 1665
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| omschrijving | This energetic portrayal of ships near the Frisian island of Texel exemplifies Backhuysen’s compelling mature work. A Dutch sailing kaag, with brown and cream sails, passes to the right, leaving other small vessels in its wake with a merchant fluyt under sail heading left towards the sea and larger merchant ships at anchor beyond. The picture’s roughly diagonal compositional rhythm extends from the lower left-hand corner towards the masthead of the large three-masted fluyt. It then moves towards the land on the horizon. The village depicted in the background is identified as Oude Schild by the distinctive tower of the Hervormde Kerk. Backhuysen’s fidelity to nature is evident in the careful rendering of the figures aboard the ships, in particular their clothes and lifelike gestures. On the far left, one man blows a trumpet in signal or salutation to the vessel departing under the stern of the fluyt. This popular narrative motif appears frequently in late seventeenth-century pictures of shipping; for example Storck’s Ships on the River IJ in front of the Tollhouse near Amsterdam (BHC0931). A barrel afloat in the water is decorated with the ‘Rode Leeuw’ (red lion) from the coat of arms of the Province of Holland. Although it recalls the earlier allegorical tradition of barrels thrown from ships in peril (BHC0810), its function within this painting is merely decorative. Backhuysen’s emphasis on verisimilitude and theatrical light effects are clearly much more weighty considerations.
The refined handling of the paint in this work not only creates a plausible image illustrating the
grandeur of late seventeenth-century marine painting, but also succeeds in bringing attention to the artist’s considerable flair. Painted in 1665, the picture was executed at the height of Backhuysen’s career.
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| afmetingen | Painting: 1065 × 1650 mm; Frame: 1402 x 1970 x 145 mm
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