Italianate Harbour Scene with the Monument of Ferdinand I de’ Medici at Leghorn, Hendrik van Minderh from the old master collection

About "Italianate Harbour Scene with the Monument of Ferdinand I de’ Medici at Leghorn, Hendrik van Minderh"

About the artwork

Italianate Harbour Scene with the Monument of Ferdinand I de’ Medici at Leghorn, Hendrik van Minderhout

A romantic evocation of a Mediterranean port scene which alludes to Leghorn (Livorno), Italy. Two large ships are anchored at the quay of an Italianate harbour. The left ship with its slender, gallant stern-castle and flapping pennants is typical of van Minderhout’s style. Her ornately carved stern bears a roundel of Neptune with his trident and four prancing hippocampi (sea-horses) which traditionally draw his chariot as god of the sea. The ship in question is apparently a Spanish or Italian warship. In the distance, an arriving ship fires a salute to a fortress at the entrance to the harbour. To the left a small craft is piled with barrels and stores. A man in red sits in silhouette on its lowered yard and a figure sits behind. Another boat, on the far left, bears a figure leaning against the mast. Goods are being loaded on the waterside and carried away by camel or donkey. On the quay, in the foreground, some trade is being carried out and a party including a handsome lady on a white horse, with two pack-mules, a camel and servants is about to leave. The white horse, on which the lady sits, resembles the graceful mount in ‘The Crucifixion’ of 1661 by the Amsterdam artist Karel du Jardin. Van Minderhout copied the donkey, in this group of figures, from an etching of 1652 by du Jardin. Near the large, classical archway two Europeans use intense gestures in their negotia