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The Singel Bridge at the…
George Hendrik Breitner, 1898, painting, SK-A-3580
Breitner often took photos when preparing a painting. Several preparatory photos for this painting are also known. The way the woman is walking directly towards us and the way the picture is cropped gives it a photographic feel. Originally, Breitner’s subject was a maid, but following the negative…
On display in room 1.18
Winter Landscape with Ice Skaters
Hendrick Avercamp, c. 1608, painting, SK-A-1718
Hendrick Avercamp turned the winter landscape into a subject in its own right. A typical feature of his early work is the high horizon. This enabled Avercamp to focus on the dozens of figures on the ice. He showed all kinds of uncouth details in this bird’s-eye view, including couples making love…
On display in room 2.6
The Threatened Swan
Jan Asselijn, c. 1650, painting, SK-A-4
With its wings stretched and its neck poised, the swan protects her eggs against a dog swimming nearby. Showing the scene from a low angle emphasises the bird’s power. The inscriptions are a later addition and have a political message. They refer to the Dutch political leader Johan de Witt, who…
On display in Gallery of Honour
Girl in a White Kimono
George Hendrik Breitner, 1894, painting, SK-A-3584
Inspired by Japanese prints, Breitner painted at least twelve versions of this girl in a white kimono around 1894. Each time, her pose is different and the kimono is a different colour. Here the embroidered white silk kimono with red trimmed sleeves and orange belt are what draw our attention. The…
On display in room 1.18
Portraits of Giuliano and Francesco…
Piero di Cosimo, 1482 - 1485, painting, SK-C-1368
This diptych shows a leading Florentine architect, Giuliano da Sangallo with his late father Francesco, also an architect and a musician. These are early examples of portraits in which the subject’s profession plays a key role. Here a pen and dividers suggest architecture, a melody in note form…
On display in room 0.5
View of Houses in Delft, Known as…
Johannes Vermeer, c. 1658, painting, SK-A-2860
An unusual painting in Vermeer’s oeuvre: a few houses and a couple of people in a quiet street. Vermeer gave the scene a palpable sense of tension and balance. The old walls, worn bricks and white plaster are almost tangible. What part of Delft this shows is no longer known.
On display in Philips wing, room 1.7
Portraits of Giuliano and Francesco…
Piero di Cosimo, 1482 - 1485, painting, SK-C-1367
This diptych shows a leading Florentine architect, Giuliano da Sangallo with his late father Francesco, also an architect and a musician. These are early examples of portraits in which the subject’s profession plays a key role. Here a pen and dividers suggest architecture, a melody in note form…
On display in room 0.5
The Sampling Officials of the…
Rembrandt van Rijn, 1662, painting, SK-C-6
Samplers checked the quality of dyed cloth. Here Rembrandt shows them at work, distracted for a moment and looking up. One syndic is about to sit, or stand, so not all the heads are at the same level. A clever trick which, with the confident brushwork and subtle use of light, make this one of the…
On display in Gallery of Honour
Ten weepers from the tomb of…
Borman workshop (attributed to), Renier van Thienen (I) (attributed to), c. 1475 - c. 1476, tomb figure, BK-AM-33-F
Isabella of Bourbon, wife of Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, Brabant and Limburg and count of Flanders, Holland and Zeeland, died in 1465. He had a superb tomb made for her at St Michiel’s Abbey in Antwerp. Around it stood 24 figures of grieving relatives and ancestors - called weepers. They…
On display in room 0.4
Ten weepers from the tomb of…
Borman workshop (attributed to), Renier van Thienen (I) (attributed to), c. 1475 - c. 1476, tomb figure, BK-AM-33-A
Isabella of Bourbon, wife of Charles the Bold, duke of Burgundy, Brabant and Limburg and count of Flanders, Holland and Zeeland, died in 1465. He had a superb tomb made for her at St Michiel’s Abbey in Antwerp. Around it stood 24 figures of grieving relatives and ancestors - called weepers. They…
On display in room 0.4