Jacob Maris
(The Hague 1837 – Carlsbad 1899)
View of the Drommedaris in Enkhuizen (ca. 1885)
Signed lr
Oil on canvas, 78.8 x 50.9 cm
Provenance:
Private collection, The Netherlands
NB:
The Drommedaris, or Dromedary, is the southern city gate of Enkhuizen and dates from 1540. Due to the view of the former Zuiderzee it also served as a defensive tower guarding the city's harbours. The original name of the building is Zuiderpoort or Ketenpoort. The name Ketenpoort refers to the manufacture of salt south of the city along the Zuiderdijk, which could be reached by this gate. At the time salt was won here by evaporating sea water which was used to pickle herring, Enkhuizen for this reason is also known as the 'herring city'. The present name of the tower dates back to the beginning, when the local population started to refer to the 'Dromedary' due to the notable shape. In the summer of 1949 the first exhibition of the Zuiderzeemuseum was held here.