Artwork
Exchange of Fire on the Vaartse Rijn near Jutphaas
Exchange of Fire on the Vaartse Rijn near Jutphaas is an unspecified painting by the Rococo painting artist Jonas Zeuner. It dates from 1788 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
The two sides are easy to tell apart: one group wears orange sashes, the other blue.
You see soldiers in blue and green coats firing muskets across a river at dusk. Smoke curls from their guns, and a few small boats float in the water.
This painting shows a real battle from a Dutch civil war in 1787. The artist painted it while the war was still fresh—almost like a news photo. The two sides are easy to tell apart: one group wears orange sashes, the other blue.
To see more paintings of battles like this, look up the Rijksmuseum.
Overview
Exchange of Fire on the Vaartse Rijn near Jutphaas is a painting depicting a skirmish during the Dutch civil war of 1786-1787.
Subject & Meaning
The painting shows a clash between the Stadtholder's army, identifiable by orange sashes, and Utrecht Patriots wearing blue sashes, as they exchange fire across the Vaartse Rijn river.
Technique & Style
The artist captured the scene at dusk, conveying the chaos of battle through the depiction of smoke curling from muskets and small boats on the water.
History & Provenance
The work was created shortly after the event it portrays, which took place on May 9, 1787, giving it a sense of immediacy.
Context
The painting is part of a broader visual record of the Dutch civil war, a conflict between Orangists and Patriots that involved several key locations, including Utrecht and Holland.
Artist & collection
Artist
Jonas Zeuner (Kassel 1727–1814), was an artist and engraver. Zeuner arrived in Amsterdam around 1750 although his first recorded work dates from after 1770. He perfected techniques for engraving in gold and silver leaf,…
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