Views of the Rhine Valley. Plate 3: View of a river mouth.

Jan van Aken (1614-61) was a Dutch Golden Age painter and printmaker about whom little is known. He was born and died in Amsterdam. His reproductive etchings are, however, of very high quality and Te Papa currently owns three from the series of four, after Herman II Saftleven, Views of the Rhine Valley. This impression, of plate 3, depicts a view of a river mouth with three men loading a small rowing boat. A cliff dominates the right foreground, and another, sheer and spectacular cliff is on the other side of the river. A ruined castle is in the distance, and there are copious pine trees. Other men are unloading small boats on the far shore on the left.

See: British Museum Collection online, https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details.aspx?objectId=1622399&partId=1&searchTe xt=van+aken+saftleven&page=1

Dr Mark Stocker   Curator, Historical International Art   March 2018