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Imitator of Hendrick van Steenwyck the Younger, 'Interior of a Church at Night', 1632

About the work

It is night-time, and we are looking into the dimly lit apse of a Catholic church. An elaborate metal baptismal font stands on red marble steps in the foreground; the column next to it is a font crane, which supports the font cover. There are still several visitors in the church and the side chapels are brightly lit, although an acolyte is putting out the candles in the chapel on the right.

An inscription on the tombstone in the foreground reads ‘Here lies entombed Henry Steenwyck’, the name of a Flemish painter who specialised in church interiors. As it bears the numbers ‘632’, presumably the last digits of the date 1632, the grave cannot be that of the painter Hendrick Steenwyck the Younger, who died in 1649. The inscription might have been intended as a signature, but the painting’s quality suggests that this is the work of an imitator.

Key facts

Full title
Interior of a Church at Night
Artist
Imitator of Hendrick van Steenwyck the Younger
Artist dates
active by 1604; died 1649
Date made
1632
Medium and support
oil on wood
Dimensions
47.1 × 65.7 cm
Acquisition credit
Bequeathed by Henry Callcott Brunning, 1907
Inventory number
NG2205
Location
Not on display
Collection
Main Collection
Previous owners

About this record

If you know more about this painting or have spotted an error, please contact us. Please note that exhibition histories are listed from 2009 onwards. Bibliographies may not be complete; more comprehensive information is available in the National Gallery Library.

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