Who painted Battle Scene?

Battle Scene was painted by Philips Wouwerman in c. 1645/1646.

Where can I see Battle Scene?

Battle Scene is held by National Gallery of Art.

What movement is Battle Scene?

Battle Scene is associated with Baroque.

Battle Scene by Philips Wouwerman (c. 1645/1646)

Inscription: Inscribed:lower right, PH in monogram: PH.W.

About this work

Technique & Style

Executed in 1645, this history painting utilizes oil paint applied to a wooden panel support.

Executed in 1645, this history painting utilizes oil paint applied to a wooden panel support. The work measures 48 cm in height and 82.5 cm in width. Physical evidence on the verso includes handwritten labels, one identifying the piece as a battle by Philips Wouwerman and another indicating former ownership by the Österby collection in Sweden.

These markings, alongside historical sale records potentially linking the work to a 1770 Hague auction, provide context for the object's physical history, though specific details regarding its current surface condition or conservation treatment are not documented in the available records.

History & Provenance

Philips Wouwerman created this oil on panel painting in 1645. While the early history of the work is not fully documented, it may correspond to a piece titled "Cavalry fight on a Hill" sold in The Hague in 1770 from the collection of J. H. van Heemskerk. Historical labels on the reverse suggest the painting was once part of the Österby collection in Söderfors, Sweden, and was identified in French as a battle scene by the artist.

In the modern era, the work belonged to Carlo Sestieri in Rome before being purchased by Joseph F. McCrindle of New York during the 1960s. McCrindle retained ownership until 2000, at which point he gifted the painting to the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.

The work is held in the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C. Its accession was made in 2000 as a gift from Joseph F. McCrindle. It has been exhibited in the gallery’s 2001 exhibition of 17th‑century Dutch paintings and again in the 2005 Dutch Golden Age survey.

Context

Philips Wouwerman's Battle Scene was painted in 1645 and exemplifies the dynamic compositions and vivid horsemen that defined his history painting genre. The work entered the collection of the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., following its acquisition by Joseph F. McCrindle in the 1960s and a subsequent gift to the museum in 2000. Its provenance includes a documented sale in The Hague in 1770 and earlier labels indicating possible Swedish ownership, linking it to a broader European collecting history.

Scholars have noted the painting’s stylistic connections to 17th-century Dutch military art and its role in shaping battle scene conventions in Baroque painting.

Overview

Philips Wouwerman’s oil on panel, dated around 1646, presents a dynamic battle tableau. The composition is crowded with mounted troops and infantry, their bodies and steeds interwoven in a tumultuous encounter. The work exemplifies the Dutch 17th‑century interest in historical and genre scenes that capture movement and conflict on a relatively small wooden support.

Subject & Meaning

The painting depicts a chaotic melee in which soldiers and horses clash from multiple directions, suggesting a larger, perhaps unspecified, military engagement. The dense arrangement of figures conveys the disorder of combat, inviting viewers to consider the human and animal cost of warfare without reference to a particular historical event.

Artist & collection

Artist

Philips Wouwerman

Philips Wouwerman (also Wouwermans) (24 May 1619 (baptized) – 19 May 1668) was a Dutch painter of hunting, landscape and battle scenes. He became prolific during the Dutch Golden Age and joined the Haarlem Guild of St. Luke.