Herd of Cattle at a Ford Near a Watermill
Medium
Engraving on cream laid paper
Dimensions
Image/plate: 20.7 × 33.8 cm (8 3/16 × 13 5/16 in.); Sheet: 27.7 × 36.3 cm (10 15/16 × 14 5/16 in.)
Classification
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
181348
Art Historical Context
Step into the tranquil Dutch countryside with *Herd of Cattle at Ford Near a Watermill a masterful 1646 engraving by Jan van Velde II. This Dutch Golden Age artist, renowned for his intricate landscapes and pastoral scenes, captures a serene moment where a herd of cattle a shallow ford beside a rustic watermill. Printed on cream laid paper—a fine, textured support typical of 17th-century printmaking—the image measures 20.7 × 33.8 cm, viewers to savor its delicate lines and atmospheric depth. Engraving, van de Velde's chosen medium, involves incising designs into a copper plate with a burin, c...
About the Artist
Jan van de Velde, II · 1593–1641
Jan van de Velde II (1593–1641) was a Dutch Golden Age printmaker and engraver whose work represents one of the high points of early seventeenth-century Dutch graphic art. Son of the calligrapher Jan van de Velde I, he was born in Delft and trained as an engraver, likely under or in close contact with the Haarlem printmaking tradition that was producing some of the most ambitious graphic work in E...