Beyond several craggy boulders that loom in the lower left corner of this horizontal painting, three sailing ships pitch wildly in crashing waves beneath towering clouds. At the center, a large ship tips sharply to our right with billowing ivory sails and two red, white, and blue striped flags whipping in the wind. White spray kicks up against the side of the boat and in the waves surrounding it. The sails of the second ship, to our right, are furled except for one that crashes down onto the deck. Tiny people scurry around inside the ship, which tilts steeply up on a high wave. The third…
Gallery mode Full size at the museum

Window mode follows your eyes with your camera, in this browser only: no picture or position leaves your device.

Ships in Distress off a Rocky Coast

Ludolf Backhuysen (Dutch, 1630 - 1708)

1667

Medium
oil on canvas
Classification
Painting
Dimensions
overall: 114.3 x 167.3 cm (45 x 65 7/8 in.) ; framed: 147.3 x 146.1 x 6.4 cm (58 x 57 1/2 x 2 1/2 in.)
Culture
Dutch
Museum
National Gallery of Art, CNE-B
Credit line
Ailsa Mellon Bruce Fund
Rights
Public domain (NGA Open Access, CC0), as the museum states it.
Who can see it
Little Ones profiles and older: it shows gentle subjects for the very young. How works are placed

View at the National Gallery of Art