_W. van de Velde_ (Dutch: 1633-1707). _See 149._
"A scene well known to those who have visited the Hague, and frequently
represented by Van de Velde. There are the high sand-hills to the
left, and above them are seen a few fishermen's huts and the little
church of Scheveningen. Along the beach are numerous figures, variously
grouped and employed; the most conspicuous are several persons near a
post-waggon. The sea is quietly rolling in to the shore, impelled by a
light breeze. The figures are painted with exquisite finish and spirit
by Adrian van de Velde" (Mrs. Jameson). Sir Robert Peel bought this
picture from the Pourtalès Collection for £800. It is a characteristic
specimen of the master, showing how his version of the sea was coloured
by that "mixture of sand and sea-water" which belongs to his native
coasts. "I have come," writes Fromentin, "to Scheveningen. Before me is
the calm, gray, fleecy North Sea. Who has not seen it? One thinks of
Ruysdael, of Van Goyen, of Van de Velde. One easily finds their point
of view. I could tell you the exact place where they sat, as if the
trace of them had remained imprinted for two centuries: the sea is on
the left; the ridged sand-hills stand out on the right, stretch away,
diminish and are lost insensibly in the dim horizon; the grass is poor;
the sand-hills are pale; the sea-shore is colourless; the sea is like
milk; the sky has silky clouds and is wonderfully aerial."