Interior of Antwerp Cathedral
Peeter Neeffs the Elder (Flemish, about 1578-d. 1656/1661)
1651. oil on canvas. 45.72 x 61.26 cm см. Indianapolis Museum of Art.
As one of the largest Gothic churches in the Netherlands, Antwerp Cathedral was by far the most prominent center of Roman Catholic worship in the Spanish Netherlands. Contemporary viewers would have recognized its cavernous interior, which was ornamented by numerous works of art—including no less than three large masterpieces by Rubens. Neeffs’s painting depicts the cathedral’s long choir: if you look closely, you will notice several large altarpieces set against the tall piers on the right, with black epitaphs and stone sculptures above them. Rather than depicting this space during the rites of the Catholic mass, Neeffs has chosen to depict it at a less solemn moment, punctuated here and there by praying churchgoers, wandering visitors, and two frolicking dogs.