The Home Fleet Saluting the State Barge

Jan van de Cappelle, a wealthy Amsterdam dyer who painted only for pleasure, became the finest marine painter of the Dutch Golden Age, celebrated for his calm, luminous seascapes. The Home Fleet Saluting the State Barge, dated 1650, reflects his mastery of tranquil water and pale northern light, a stillness that distinguished his work from the stormier scenes of his contemporaries.