English: The Merchant Shipping Anchorage off Texel Island with Oudeschild in the Distance

The setting for this painting is the merchant shipping roadstead off the eastern coast of Texel, one of a group of northern islands guarding the entrance to the Zuider Zee. Texel Island can be seen ahead with the village of Oude Schild to the far right. The village is identified as Oude Schild by the distinctive tower of the Hervormde Kerk. On the horizon, beyond the merchant ship furthest left, is the channel between the islands into the North Sea. The roughly diagonal compositional rhythm extends from the lower left-hand corner of the painting towards the masthead of the large three-masted fluyt. Then it moves towards the land on the horizon. The artist has intentionally arranged a cross section of coastal craft to demonstrate the significance of the sea. On the right a kaag, a common type of ferry boat, with brown and cream sails is running before the wind with sprit-rigged mainsail and foresail. To the left is a fluyt under sail with a larger ship passing which is hidden beyond and to the right. Further back a Dutch warship lies at anchor. Another fluyt lies at anchor on the far right.

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 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. The painting, executed in 1665, was produced at the height of Backhuysen’s career. This energetic portrayal of ships near the Frisian island of Texel exemplifies Backhuysen’s compelling mature work.

Initially Ludolf Backhuysen trained as a calligrapher in his native Germany before moving to Amsterdam. There he was inspired by the grisaille drawings of van de Velde the Elder who, at that time, was famed for his grisailles and pen paintings (BHC0277). Backhuysen's move to the city facilitated a profitable association with Willem van de Velde the Elder. Later, in the studios of van Everdingen and Dubbels, he was introduced to marine painting in oils. He was a contemporary of van de Velde the Younger and shared with him a concern for painting ships with accuracy and understanding. The painting is signed on the bale in the vessel on the far left.

The Merchant Shipping Anchorage off Texel Island with Oude Schild in the Distance