Schets van een groep ruiters 1620 - 1700

Nicolaes van Lijnhoven made this sketch of a group of riders using pen in the late 17th century. In the Dutch Golden Age, the military was a central component of the nation's identity, and paintings of military exploits were very popular. Looking at the composition, the riders are grouped together on the right. They are riding towards the right, which is unusual, as in Western art, forward motion tends to be from left to right. This is a sketch, so maybe the artist was experimenting with the composition. We can tell that it is from the Netherlands because of the clothing of the riders, and the flat landscape. The flat landscape also suggests a certain kind of warfare, where cavalry would have been very important. To understand this image better, we could look at other images of military life, and conduct some research into the institutions of the military in the Netherlands at this time.