This painting is certainly one of the most remarkable Romantic representations of a Luxembourg landscape. It was executed in 1848 by the most renowned landscape painter of his time, Dutch artist Barend Cornelis Koekkoek, for none other than the King of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg William II (1840-1849).

Our painting shows the ruins of Larochette Castle, which William II had acquired on the occasion of a trip to Luxembourg in May 1845. He was accompanied by Koekkoek, and at the end of the same year the painter was commissioned to do a series of nine large Luxembourg landscapes. Only eight of these were actually executed, one of which was later destroyed in a fire. Three others have disappeared since World War II.

The artist must have been particulary fascinated by theview of Larochette as it insprired him to create at least two drawings and a watercolour, the latter also kept at the MNHA.

Like all of Koekkoek’s paintings, our painting bears witness to the artist’s great ability to orchestrate light. While he favoured idealized fantasy landscapes that he “composed” by combining various elements, the Luxembourg landscapes he painted for William II distinguish themselves through their topographical accuracy.

This painting was bought in 2016 with the support of the Fonds culturel national and the Amis des musées through a crowdfunding campaign.

Text | CC BY-NC | Michel Polfer