Sidney and Lois Eskenazi Museum of Art

About this Work

Despite Emanuel de Witte’s precise architectural rendering, the church portrayed here does not correspond to any known Amsterdam church. Certain details—including the large crucifix above the altar, the two monks at left, and the wall-mounted sculpture of the Virgin and Child at right—identify this imaginary space as Catholic. This raises questions about the market for the picture. Although Amsterdam was predominantly Protestant, a large Catholic minority in the city may have provided patronage for such imagery. De Witte began painting images of church interiors in Delft, where he lived from 1640 to 1651. In 1652, he moved to Amsterdam, possibly to take advantage of the larger market for architectural scenes.