Gerrit Berckheyde

Berckheyde was a Haarlem painter and one of the earliest Dutch specialists in townscapes. He also painted some landscapes and church interiors, like 'The Interior of the Grote Kerk, Haarlem', and shop interiors, but he specialised in townscapes of Haarlem, Amsterdam and The Hague. He made repetitions of many of his works.

Berckheyde was born in Haarlem, and was probably trained by his elder brother, Job. The brothers visited Germany, including Cologne and Heidelberg, where Gerrit worked at the court of the Elector Palatine. In 1660 he became a member of the Haarlem guild of painters and was mainly active there until his death.