A Place That Didn't Exist

A view over the city

For this painting, Withoos chose a striking perspective from which to depict the city. Many artists painted Amersfoort from the Amersfoortse Berg. Withoos instead looked at the city from the north-west. This means you see not only the churches and city walls, but also the area outside the city.

A view that doesn't exist

It looks as though you are gazing down at Amersfoort from a great height. Yet this vantage point did not exist at all. There was no hill or tower there. Withoos created this image from his memories, his own perspective on the city and with the help of various maps of the city. A painter of great talent — which is why his paintings were already enormously costly in the seventeenth century.

A view that was worth a great deal

If you wanted a painting by Withoos to hang on your wall, it would have cost you between 300 and 600 guilders at the time. Other paintings by other artists could be had for between 10 and 40 guilders. This placed Withoos's work among the most expensive cityscapes of the era.

Trade along the Eem

In the painting you discover ships on the Eem, windmills along the city's edge and bleaching fields where cotton was laid out to dry. In the seventeenth century, textiles played an important role in Amersfoort. Withoos shows how lively the city was. You can also see the drawbridge and the bustle on the water. People work the land, goods are transported and small ships sail towards the city.

An artist from Amersfoort

Matthias Withoos was born in Amersfoort and learned to paint from artist and architect Jacob van Campen at the Randenbroek estate. He later travelled to Rome, where he studied the art of classical antiquity. After his return, Withoos grew into a well-known Amersfoort resident.

Keep looking further

The painting is almost five metres wide. As a result, it feels as though you yourself are looking out over the city. You can see small ships on the water, people at work and buildings such as the Lieve Vrouwetoren and the Koppelpoort that are still recognisable in the old city centre today. In the lower right are conspicuous glacial boulders. They may be a reference to the famous stone-rolling event of 1661 — a story that is still connected with Amersfoort.