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Introduction Subject Madder Technique Dutch Landscapes
Hobbema 'The Avenue at Middelharnis', 1689. Madder root Pigment made from madder

The high-roofed barn on the right is a 'meestoof', a particular type of barn used for the drying of 'meerkrap', - madder in English - which was used as a dyestuff for textiles and a pigment for painters.

The cultivation of meerkrap, a root crop, was an important industry in the provinces of South Holland and Zeeland in the 17th and 18th centuries. However, the invention of synthetic madder in the mid-19th century led to its rapid decline and the demolition of the meestoven. The one in 'The Avenue at Middelharnis was demolished in about 1880.

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Main image: Detail of Hobbema 'The Avenue at Middelharnis', 1689. London, The National Gallery.

Top detail: Madder root.

Bottom detail: Pigment made from madder.