View of Paris seen from the Place Dauphine
Pieter Wouwerman
1638-1682
The crowds in this painting include street entertainers, noblemen and beggars jostling each other; to the far right we even see someone emerging after a swim in the river. We are in Place Dauphine on the island Île de la Cité in the heart of Paris, looking out towards Pont Neuf. The river is of course the Seine, flowing around the island. An accurate perspective Pont Neuf – “the new bridge” – was commissioned by the king of France, Henri IV, and officially opened in 1607. Pieter Wouwerman painted his view of the scene after a print by Stefano della Bella: La Perspective de Pont Neuf. Perhaps the accurate rendition of perspective was the feature that merited the painting’s inclusion in the first room of the Royal Danish Kunstkammer.
SMK – National Gallery of Denmark, Copenhagen · Image: SMK – National Gallery of Denmark, Public domain · Text: SMK – National Gallery of Denmark (text: Eva de la Fuente Pedersen), CC0