On the eastern end of the Grote Markt, opposite the town hall stands the 'great church' (Grote Kerk) of St. Bavo's. The gothic cathedral was completed in 1550 and dedicated to the patron Saint of Haarlem.
Between 1665 and 1696, Gerrit Berckheyde painted numerous views of the church. This painting corresponds to Berckheyde's favored vantage point from the west, and at a slight angle to show its north elevation. On the other hand, it is one of the few compositions with a vertical format. Similar to a signed and 1683 dated view in the Museum der Bildenden Künste, Leipzig (see C. Lawrence, op. cit., plate 14), the present view shows the foreshortened west façade brilliantly illuminated by the late-afternoon sun. Saint Bavo's bright west front contrasts sharply with the silhouetted stepped façades of the Vleeshal and the houses adjacent to it. Comparable to a 1696 dated view in the Frans Halsmuseum, Haarlem (loc. cit., plate 18), Berckheyde created a more monumental impression by expanding the square in the foreground, and by decreasing the number of figures, which are quite rigidly relegated to positions within the square.
Berckheyde can be considered, along with Jan van der Heyden, as one of the greatest of all Dutch painters of townscapes. He painted several views of Amsterdam and The Hague during the course of his career, but it is for views of his native Haarlem that he is most celebrated. He joined the painters’ guild there in 1660 and later in that decade began to paint views of the city's landmarks, presumably in response to local demand (see W. Liedtke, 'Pride in Perspective: The Dutch Townscape', Connoisseur, CC, April 1979, pp. 264-273). The setting for most of his Haarlem views was the Grote Markt, which, like the Dam in Amsterdam, was the commercial and civic hub of the city. Its principal buildings – the church of St. Bavo's, the town hall and Lieven de Key's Vleeshal (meat market) – represented Haarlem's religious, political and commercial institutions that together embodied the city's identity and source of pride.
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THIS CONDITION REPORT HAS BEEN PREPARED BY LARA LARSSON- VAN WASSENAAR
The painting is executed in oil paint on canvas. The canvas has been relined in the past and is stretched on an old, but not the original, stretcher frame.
Due to the relining the coarse linen grid was slightly printed in the paint layer, this is mainly visible in the sky and in the bottom left and right foreground, below the man pushing the wheelbarrow. There is some minor retouching throughout the painting. Otherwise, the paint layer has been very well preserved. There is a small hole under the dog that has been retouched. Also the edges have been retouched. Some pentimenti around the tower, where the painter himself has made some changes and the brushstrokes in the air differ.
The painting consists of a thick old yellowed varnish layer. This makes the linen grid stand out more.
This painting would benefit greatly from a good cleaning and more refined retouching of the grid.
All observations were made with the naked eye and under UV light.