A Son of the Rock

The centre piece of the Rijksmuseum’s Great Hall is Rembrandt’s masterpiece The Night Watch.

Imagine our disappointment when we entered the room in which it is displayed to see this:-

It was cordoned off and we therefore could not see it properly. Apparently minor air movements make the canvas flex, potentially damaging it, and they were measuring just how large the movements were so that they can prevent any future deterioration.

However there was a painting of a similar subject (well, lots of Dutch burghers) just to The Night Watch’s right as you look at it, which I had to take two photos of to get it all and then stitch:-

Vermeer’s milkmaid was also in the Great Hall but the lighting conditions weren’t good and my photo came out blurry.

Also nearby was this still life. Still Life with Cheese by Floris Claesz Van Dijck:-