From January 20, the View of The Hague from the southeast by Jan van Goyen (1650-1651) will be exhibited in the Atrium City Hall. With a width of 4.6 meters, the View of The Hague is one of the largest cityscapes ever made in the Netherlands. The painting shows the 17th century city surrounded by meadows and with busy traffic of people along the channel Trekvliet.

Jan van Goyen made this panoramic painting in 1651 on behalf of the Hague magistrate. This was how the city council expressed their pride in The Hague. More than 350 years later, this is still a painting to be proud of. Exactly in the middle of the painting is a stork, the symbol of the city. The cityscape was hung in the (old) town hall on the Groenmarkt. Normally the View of The Hague is the highlight in the Schutterszaal of the Hague Historical Museum. Because the museum is currently being renovated, this masterpiece will hang in the Atrium City Hall. So in a sense the painting is back home.

Unique Collaboration
Foundation Atrium City Hall, the Municipality of The Hague and Hague Historical Museum believe it is important that View of The Hague remains accessible to the public during the renovation of the museum building, which will take place until the spring of 2027. Because of this, they have entered into this unique collaboration: this masterpiece can be seen in the Atrium City Hall for no less than a year and a half. The specially designed climate controlled showcase has been realized thanks to generous support by Meerdervoort N.V. en Van der Feltz advocaten.

Release Masterpiece Vies of The Hague - Jan van Goyen (1650-1651) by aldermen Saskia Bruines. Photo Municipality of The Hague Martijn Beekman
Release Masterpiece Vies of The Hague – Jan van Goyen (1650-1651) by aldermen Saskia Bruines. Photo Municipality of The Hague Martijn Beekman.

For more information, go to haagshistorischmuseum.nl/en.