Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraten:: The ruins of the old city hall of Amsterdam after the fire (1652 - 1666)

(Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam, The Netherlands)

A painting by the Dutch artist Jan Abrahamsz Beerstraten (1622-1666). Yesterday i posted a painting of Beerstraten about the old city hall of Amsterdam on fire (see here: The old city hall of Amsterdam on fire). On this painting Beerstraten shows the ruins of the city hall after the fire. The painting shows the state of the building directly after the fire as the city council ordered the leveling of the large tower in the middle two days after the fire as it was unstable. A group of men can be seen working amongst the ruins. These men are working for the city council and are looking for important documents and melted gold and silver - the city hall also functioned as a bank and all the stored gold and silver was melted in the fire. Almost all the gold and silver was found and sold later when the selling price was right. On the left side of the painting a wooden fence can be seen with several soldiers sitting next to it. These men are guarding the ruins of the city hall. The viewpoint of the painting is towards the Dam square, the city hall is seen here from the back. Painting from 1652-1666.