(Alkmaar 1617–1692 Amsterdam)
An interior of a Protestant Gothic church,
signed and dated lower right: E De. Witte A° 166[?],
oil on panel, 56 x 43 cm, framed

Provenance:
Private collection, Germany, since the 19th Century

The present painting depicts the interior of a Gothic church in the Low Countries after the Reformation. Motifs within this church interior relate to the Great Church (Grote Kerk) Saint Lawrence church in Alkmaar and to the Old Church (Oude Kerk) in Amsterdam but have clearly been mixed with elements of other churches as well, creating a free interpretation by the artist. A playful array of geometrical shapes in soft tones of light and darker shades dominate the composition and gently slide over the carefully arranged figures, who have not been assigned with any particular role. At the end of the transept, which forms the line of sight of the composition, two figures are visible standing outside the side entrance, gently illuminated by glowing sunbeams. The vanishing point of the composition is just to their right. In the lower foreground of the scene a wooden wheelbarrow is left to one side by an open grave where human remains are visible as a reminder of human mortality.

The present scene peacefully illustrates how in the Protestant North of the Low Countries, icons were believed to be a distraction from the true messages of God and were forbidden, most of them having been destroyed during the Beeldenstorm of the sixteenth century. Since then, the churches had been simplified and decorations and Biblical frescoes were overpainted with white plasterwork and paint. The word of God became of central importance and therefore the Bible was translated into the northern languages and read during service. The main altar was no longer utilised and instead the pulpit was introduced, from which the pastor addressed the faithful in their own language from the centre of the church, around which the pews were placed in circles.

The Alkmaar-born Emanuel de Witte started as a figure painter but excelled later in his career in the newly developed subgenre of church interiors. In his early days the artist worked in different cities before settling in Amsterdam from 1652 until his death. It has been suggested that royalists in Delft encouraged de Witte to focus as an artist on the grave of the murdered William of Orange located in Delft’s New Church (Nieuwe Kerk) through which his interest for the painting of church interiors was born. After initially following the architecture strictly, the artist allowed himself freedom of combining elements from different churches in later works, of which the present painting is a fine example.