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As the town grew so too did its harbor on the East River. Vessels of all kinds plied the waters of New Netherland. The focal point of this painting is a Dutch “fluyt,” (pronounced flout), designed to maximize cargo space and minimize crew. The smaller vessel, ferrying passengers from Brooklyn to Manhattan, is a typical Dutch schallop. The large building in the left background, often referred to as the “Great House,” was the residence of New Netherland’s Director General, Peter Stuyvesant. The Dutch church within the walls of Fort Amsterdam in the center background is easily identified by its twin gables and yellow brick. Pearl Street, also referred to as “The Strand,” traverses the riverfront along the left background.
This painting is based on Dutch records, Stokes’s Iconography of Manhattan, and Jacques Cortelyou’s 1665 map of Manhattan, often referred to as the “Castello Plan,” which resides in the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, in Florence, Italy.
Exhibition History“A Sense of Time: The Historical Art of L. F. Tantillo,” Albany Institute of History and Art, Albany, NY, January 27 – July 25, 2021.
Artist
Len F. Tantillo
(b. 1946)
On the East River, Manhattan, circa 1655
Date2015
MediumOil on canvas
DimensionsSight: 23 1/2 × 35 1/2 in. (59.7 × 90.2 cm)
Object numberN0004.2015
Credit LineCollection of the Fenimore Art Museum. Museum Purchase
Photograph by Richard Walker
Label TextThis painting depicts the tip of Manhattan as it may have appeared looking northwest across the East River, circa 1655. By that date New Amsterdam (New York City) had grown into a vibrant colonial town. The early wood and thatch structures were being replaced by multi-level masonry buildings much like those in Amsterdam at that time.As the town grew so too did its harbor on the East River. Vessels of all kinds plied the waters of New Netherland. The focal point of this painting is a Dutch “fluyt,” (pronounced flout), designed to maximize cargo space and minimize crew. The smaller vessel, ferrying passengers from Brooklyn to Manhattan, is a typical Dutch schallop. The large building in the left background, often referred to as the “Great House,” was the residence of New Netherland’s Director General, Peter Stuyvesant. The Dutch church within the walls of Fort Amsterdam in the center background is easily identified by its twin gables and yellow brick. Pearl Street, also referred to as “The Strand,” traverses the riverfront along the left background.
This painting is based on Dutch records, Stokes’s Iconography of Manhattan, and Jacques Cortelyou’s 1665 map of Manhattan, often referred to as the “Castello Plan,” which resides in the Biblioteca Medicea Laurenziana, in Florence, Italy.
Exhibition History“A Sense of Time: The Historical Art of L. F. Tantillo,” Albany Institute of History and Art, Albany, NY, January 27 – July 25, 2021.
On View
Not on viewc. 1926
