Selected Members of the Van Wassenaer Obdam Family

□

Selected members of the Van Wassenaer Obdam family

Jacob III (1610-1665) x Agnes van Renesse van der Aa (d. 1661)

Jacob IV (1645-1714) x Adriana S. van Raesfelt (d. 1694)

Johan Hendrik Unico Wilhelm (1683-1745) (1692-1766) x Dodonea L. van Goslinga (1702-1769)

Jacob Jan Carel George (1725-1779) (1733-1800) x Jacoba E. van Strijen (1741-1816)

Jacob Unico Wilhelm (1769-1812) x 2 Margaretha H. Alewijn (1776-1802)

Marie Cornélie (1799-1850)

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Figure 2 > P. Prieur, portrait of the Lieutenant Admiral Jacob III van Wassenaer Obdam,1659. Collection Twickel Foundation. Photograph: Rik Klein Cotink

Figure 3 » J.J. Borchers, portrait of Jacob IV van Wassenaer Obdam. Collection Twickel Foundation. Photograph: Rik Klein Cotink 1676 (fig. 3). A descendant of an ancient and very prominent family of regents, van Wassenaer Obdam brought with him the political influence that the van Raesfelt family was keen to acquire. Jacob IV’s father Jacob III had been lieutenant-admiral and had continued the family line of military prowess (fig. 2). Among his achievements was the defeat of a Swedish fleet near Denmark, which earned him the Order of the Elephant. His bond with Denmark remained strong and the miniature portrait depicted here was probably made there, painted by Paul Prieur, an artist who was employed by the Danish court. Particularly successful financially was the capture of a fleet loaded with sugar during a blockade of the River Tagus in Lisbon. Actions such as these facilitated the purchase of property on the Kneuterdijk, within close proximity of the Stadholder’s court. The admiral did not, however, survive to enjoy his luxurious quarters for very long. During the battle of Lowestoft in 1665, his ship, the Eendracht, was blown up by a direct English hit on the gunpowder room.

• Jacob IV Jacob IV thus became head of the family at the age of 20, a good decade before he was to marry and add Twickel to his already considerable possessions. The van Wassenaers, among the most influential aristocrats in the Dutch republic, maintained close contact with Stadholder William III and his wife Mary Stuart II, equally based in The Hague until their ascension to the English throne in 1689. Twickel served as a country seat alongside their regular residence on the Kneuterdijk, although Jacob IV spent a large proportion of his time on battlefields. He commanded troops on various occasions and acted as a diplomat at Versailles, in London and elsewhere, until an embarrassing episode in 1703. At the battle of Ekeren on the banks of the Westerschelde estuary, he found himself and his men surrounded by French troops. Estimating the situation to be lost, he fled through the enemy lines, ripping off his insignia. His report of defeat to headquarters in The Hague caused only a temporary stir, for soon afterwards the news was brought that despite his departure, the abandoned troops had nevertheless been victorious.

Despite full official rehabilitation, his reputationDownloaded never recovered, from Brill.com10/03/2021 and the 07:28:38PM rest of his career focused on diplomatic missions and other political activities.via free He access Figure 4 spent several years at the culturally sophisticated court of Johann Wilhelm II, Facade of the Kneuter Elector Palantine in Dusseldorf, where his lineage gave him access to dijk house of van Was European court circles. The elector bestowed upon him the hereditary title of senaer Obdam. Reichsgraf. His sons Johan Hendrik and Unico Wilhelm accompanied their Engraving, in: J. de Riemer, Beschrij father on several occasions, experiencing the rich cultural life of the Elector ving van ’s Cravenhage, in Germany. c. 1730. Collection Gemeente • Johan Hendrik and Kneuterdijk archief Den Haag After their father’s death in 1714, Unico Wilhelm inherited Twickel, while his elder brother Johan Hendrik took up residence in the family seat of Kneuterdijk. Between 1716 and 1723, three existing properties were transformed into an elegant town palace, under the direction of the architect Daniël Marot (fig. 4). He based his design on the French model. Symmetrical wings led the eye to the central fa^ade, the central stairs and dome above accentuating the entrance. The slightly elevated ground floor gave the building a distinguished appearance that matched the political ambitions of the van Wassenaers. Johan Hendrik (fig. 5), now carrying his father's title of count, considered his position as an heir: 'since I am obliged to live here, I am compelled to observe that which is seemly to my birth and propriety and according to the rank and dignities, with which our ancestors have been vested thus far in this republic’.1

Johan Hendrik acquitted himself well in hisDownloaded public role, from Brill.com10/03/2021 which culminated 07:28:38PM in via free access his being appointed, albeit briefly, to the important position of Grand Pensionary of Holland. In his personal life, he dedicated considerable efforts □ to his extensive art collections. Consequently, his expenditure was such that after his death in 1745, he left his family with significant debts attached to various properties. His brother Unico Wilhelm spent some time recovering from these. He now owned both Twickel and the Kneuterdijk, and spent his time alternating between the two. On his death in 1766, followed by that of his wife three years later, once again the properties were divided between two sons: the elder son Johan Jacob moved into Kneuterdijk, while his brother Carel George took care of Twickel.

• The late 18th century Johan Jacob seems to have enjoyed the good life, spending considerable sums on foreign trips, women and opera. Like his uncle Johan Hendrik, he remained unmarried. He died in 1779, leaving his brother Carel George as the sole heir. Carel George broke with the family tradition of preserving the noble sixteen quarters of his coat of arms when he married Jacoba Elisabeth van Strijen. There was a good reason to do so. Van Strijen not only survived her brother, sister and brother-in-law of the van Strijen lineage of successful merchants, but also the brothers and sister of her first husband Dirk Trip, from a wealthy and powerful Amsterdam family. Her vast fortune restored the depleted treasure chests of the van Wassenaers to their former glory.

Figure 5 > After 1750, the attention of the van Wassenaers had gradually shifted to P. Schenk, Portrait of Twickel, where the Baroque garden design by Marot was updated to the Johan Hendrik van prevailing English landscaped style and a canal was dug nearby, to stimulate Wassenaer Obdam, the local economy. Nevertheless, Carel George continued his political role print, c. 1703. Collection Rijksmuseum Amster until his death in 1800. His wife Jacoba Elisabeth outlived him by 16 years, dam, RP-P-1906-3574 even surviving their only son Jacob Unico Wilhelm, who died in 1812. Unfortunately, Jacob Unico had been unable to continue the family line. Figure 6 » Despite three marriages, he only produced a daughter with his second wife: D. Marot, cabinet with Marie Cornélie. With the end of the Wassenaer Obdam lineage, the porcelain, print, 1712. Collection Rijksmuseum Kneuterdijk changed hands. After the death of Jacoba Elisabeth in 1816, it Amsterdam, RP-P-1964- was sold. The contents came to Twickel and, as we shall see, it is likely that 3063 the Kakiemon collection was part of the Kneuterdijk inventory.

Downloaded from Brill.com10/03/2021 07:28:38PM via free access □ Japanese porcelain in the Kneuterdijk There are a number of inventories describing the van Wassenaer properties over the centuries. Porcelain figures in many of them, although, as one would expect, few records are specific enough to allow attribution to existing pieces. However, in combination with other documents, it is possible to reconstruct an image of the types of porcelain that were present in the Kneuterdijk residences.

• The 1676 inventory The first is the inventory of the contents of one of the two Kneuterdijk houses owned by the van Wassenaers. Jacob IV owned two adjoining houses on the Kneuterdijk, one of which was lived in by his sister Agnes. Agnes made an inventory of her rooms on her brother’s marriage in 1676. The ‘memory of porcelain’ lists 116 pieces, of which 100 were dishes and saucers of various kinds. The only clear description is of ‘6 of the large butter dishes with tulips painted in them’, which may refer to Chinese Kraak-ware dishes with such motifs.2 The inventory States that the porcelain was in ‘the room upstairs on the streef, a bedroom, of which ‘the chimney decorated with porcelain that is on a separate list’.3 This list survives, attached to the document, and we thus have here a very early and important reference to a chimney lavishly decorated with porcelain in the Netherlands. It is very clear that the Kneuterdijk was furnished according to the very latest fashion. The floor plan was based on the French model of the appartement, a fixed system of a succession of rooms ending in the most private space, the ‘cabinet’. In Holland, the system was not usually strictly adhered to, but the van Wassenaer house was the first private house in The Hague to have such a configuration, including a cabinet. The layout was similar to that of the Stadholder’s quarters on Noordeinde, where there had been cabinets as early as 1632. Amalia van Solms was responsible for this design, and she was the first in Holland to have a dedicated room decorated with porcelain.4

Amalia’s female descendants incorporated large quantities of porcelains into their residences of Oranienburg, Oranienstein and Charlottenburg. It was due to their activities that the porcelain craze took hold. The true porcelain cabinet came into being, where blue-and-white and coloured pieces of Chinese and Japanese porcelain were displayed in ornate arrangements that accentuated the architectural clements of the interior, forming a single, grand decoration scheme (fig. 6).

The porcelain cabinet as a requisite residential ingrediënt certainly did not go unnoticed by Mary II. After her marriage to Stadholder William III in 1677, Mary installed several porcelain cabinets. It is known that Honselaarsdijk had one by 1686 and after their ascension to the English throne in 1689, no less than five cabinets were installed in Kensington Palace, the couple’s London residence. Their main seat Hampton Court was also furnished with porcelain and it is no surprise that various English country houses came to have considerable collections of porcelain. Bearing this in mind, it is inconceivable that the van Wassenaer Obdam family was unaware of this fashion that blossomed so feverishly around them; Jacob IV was in close

contact with William III and his sister Agnes correspondedDownloaded from Brill.com10/03/2021with Mary II. 07:28:38PM We have already seen that Agnes had porcelain in the interior in 1676. viaIn free the access decades following, the amount of porcelain in the house inhabited by Agnes □ would certainly not have decreased, and the same goes for the neighbouring house of Jacob and his wife Adriana.

• The 1715 sale When Jacob IV died in 1714, the Kneuterdijk houses went to his eldest son Johan Hendrik, who proceeded to sell off part of the contents. An invoice for an advertisement in the newspaper Haagsche Courant survives among Hendrik's papers, announcing the sale on April 2, 1715 of ‘fine furnishings, consisting of carpets and other wall hangings, damask and old bedsteads among which a small bed with red damask and gold trimming, mattresses, tables, mirrors, chairs, cabinets and many other sorts of fine Japanese and Chinese old and new porcelains, coloured as well as blue, being ‘kraek’ dishes and bowls of various sizes, pots, bottles, ‘rolwagens’, large pagodas, chocolate, coffee tea ware, tea pots and also some beautiful lacquer work, minerals and further rarities [...].’5 Although the specification of the porcelain as being ‘kraek’ suggests porcelain of the period up to 1660, the mention of fine Japanese porcelain indicates that at least some porcelain from the second half of the 17th century was sold off at this point.

The sale must have been instigated by Johan Hendrik’s plans to build a town palace, the construction of which started in 1716.6 Rather than keeping everything, he would have disposed of the clements of the interior that had gone out of fashion. The old interior with red damask may have been as much as 40 years old, and would have been darker than the taste of the 1710s required, certainly in the elegant town house that Marot dreamt up for Johan Hendrik. In this respect, it seems logical that Kraak porcelain was not what Johan Hendrik wished to have in his new interior. As we will see below, we have evidence of what he did want: Kakiemon porcelain.

• Johan Hendrik's invoices Let us look at the evidence, for it is of extraordinary rarity and clarity. In the Twickel archives a group of invoices survive of Johan Hendrik’s personal purchases, listing numerous acquisitions of drawings, paintings, precious stones, lacquer and porcelain. Of these, 29 list Asian objects.7 They start in 1719, while the Kneuterdijk was still under construction, and run to the penultimate year of Johan Hendrik’s life, 1744. These 25 years may perhaps not span the entire period of his collecting, but must certainly have been his most active period, starting soon after he inherited his share of the family fortune. The invoices include Chinese drawings8 and twelve pieces of lacquer, among which ‘two lacquered boxes like cloverleaves’9 and two lacquer ‘idols’.10 The main bulk is taken up by 202 pieces of porcelain, costing a total of some 5,600 guilders.11 It becomes immediately apparent that this was a considerable amount of money, if we consider the average annual income for an unskilled labourer was around 450 guilders.12 On various occasions, Johan Hendrik spent more than this on a single purchase, such as the ‘11 dishes of extra old Japanese coloured Porcelain’ or ‘two hexagonal Japanese pots coloured porcelain’, both for 600 guilders (figs. 7 and 8).13

These two invoices clearly specify that the porcelainDownloaded was from Japanese, Brill.com10/03/2021 coloured 07:28:38PM and in the former case ‘extra old’. A number of conclusions may be drawn.via free access □

Figure 7 Invoice, Aletta Thiens, ]/>M m jj /hl/t ïHUr t Amsterdam, 13 May 1734. Collection Twickel Foundation jccr

Figure 8 Invoice, .J.C. Ravens, The Hague, 6 November 1725. Collection Twickel Foundation * /«3e.,-

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First of all, a clear distinction was made between Japanese and Chinese porcelain. We know that Japanese porcelain was more valuable than Chinese, so dealers, valuers and employees of auction houses needed to be able to teil the difference. Many customers must also have been able to distinguish between the two. By 1730, quite a large proportion of society had had porcelain in the interior for well over a century and a discerning collector like Johan Hendrik, for whom not just any type of porcelain would suffice,

must undoubtedly have been keen to furnish hisDownloaded interiors from with Brill.com10/03/2021 a fashionable, 07:28:38PM evidently expensive assortment. via free access 10 A second conclusion may be that Johan Hendrik was a collector of Kakiemon porcelain. The qualification ‘extra old Japanese coloured porcelain’ strongly points in that direction, since Kakiemon is the only coloured Japanese ware that was around in the late 17th century, the period to which this remark must refer. The only other candidate would be Imari-style porcelain, but it is very likely that this style only originated in around 1690, and it continued to be available throughout the 18th century.14 In other words, since Imari was available new in around 1730, there would have been no reason to call it extra old and price it at such a high level. The reference to Kakiemon is even clearer from the other invoice. A hexagonal Japanese coloured pot cannot be anything else than a Kakiemon lidded jar of the Hampton Court type (fig. 9); Imari jars exist in round, square or octagonal shapes, but not hexagonal.

What could have inspired Johan Hendrik to collect art, and Kakiemon in Figure 9 particular? There is no direct evidence, but if we were to guess, it could well ‘Hampton Court jar’, be that the trips with his father to Germany and the rich cultural life of the Japan, 1670-1700. From: Elector’s court in Dusseldorf sparked off the interests that he was to pursue Porcelain far Palaces: so avidly in later life. There is also his friendship with the Bentinck family. The Fashion far Japan in Europe 1650-1750, Johan Hendrik was guardian to Willem Bentinck (1704-1774), who owned a London, 1990, p. 171. house nearby in The Hague and with whom he stayed in close contact right up to the end of his life. Bentinck planned to visit the ill Johan Hendrik on February 5, 1745 and wrote: ‘I was not a little struck this morning when just as I was going to him a servant came and told me all was over; I went to the family immediately which I found all very much moved, especially poor Mlle. Obdam, who looses the whole comfort of her life, and is really a moving sight’.15 This quote is taken from a letter to Bentinck’s aunt Margaret Cavendish-Bentinck, Duchess of Portland (1715-1785), the great art collector.16 Johan Hendrik and Margaret’s friendship was probably very relevant for our story: both amassed a large art collection and both bought Kakiemon. Further research is needed to ascertain how they influenced each other’s collecting activities.

• The 1769 sale Johan Hendrik accumulated a great number of objects. When his collection was partly auctioned in three sales in 1750 by his brother Unico Wilhelm, probably by financial necessity, there are catalogues listing nearly 1,000 prints, over 800 sculptures and other objects, and well over 100 paintings by among others Rembrandt, Rubens, Metsu and van Ostade. Crucial for our story is a second batch of objects from Johan Hendrik’s collection that was auctioned after the death of Unico Wilhelm’s wife in 1769, presumably to fund the extravagant lifestyle of their eldest son Jacob Jan. No less than 900 pieces of porcelain were sold in Amsterdam on the 25th of October.17 The catalogue divides them as follows:

239 ‘old coloured Japanese porcelains of the first class’ 159 ‘blue Japanese porcelains’ 177 ‘Japanese coloured porcelains’

76 ‘coloured Chinese porcelains’ 148 ‘blue Chinese porcelains’

Downloaded from Brill.com10/03/2021 07:28:38PM 101 ‘porcelains for fruit etc.’18 via free access 0 With 25% Chinese and 64% Japanese, the marked preference for Japanese is evident. This comes as no surprise, given the fact that Johan Hendrik must have been keen to furnish the Kneuterdijk in a grand manner. Having constructed such an elegant townhouse, designed by the famous architect Marot and in a prestigieus location, the porcelain needed to be of appropriate quality. By the early 18th century, many were able to afford porcelain, mainly the mass-produced and thus much cheaper Chinese porcelain. For status, the more expensive Japanese porcelain was much more suitable. Kakiemon, being the most expensive type within Japanese porcelain, was the choice for a truly royal display that was only available to the richest. The prices on the invoices are testimony of its exclusivity in the 1730s, just as it would have been when bought new in the period 1670-1700.

It is difficult to identify actual pieces from the catalogue descriptions of the Chinese porcelain, but the Japanese part is remarkably specific. We can be certain that the category of ‘old coloured Japanese porcelains of the first class’ (on the title page further qualified as ‘with the brown edge’) refers to Kakiemon. Many of the entries mention a brown edge and a floral decoration of some soit. No less than 11 catalogue entries are so precisely formulated that it is possible to relate them to actual existing Kakiemon patterns (figs. 10-20 and 22). From the descriptions, various things are worth noting. A prunus tree was called a ‘Peppertree’, bamboo seems to have gone under the name of a ‘Teatree’. ‘Jasmin’ seems to have been another name for Kakiemon; it is also found on Johan Hendrik’s invoice (fig. 7). Also, it is interesting to find the exact use of hanging vases: the catalogue mentions two, and States that they were to hang on a chimneypiece.19 Lastly, it may well be that the hexagonal jars that Johan Hendrik bought earlier are the same that appear in this catalogue: Two hexagonal Peacock pots with Lids and Bouquets, with mosaic edges above.’20 We have Johan Hendrik’s invoices for four and the catalogue lists six.21 Indeed, there are none left in the present collection in Twickel.

Figure io > < Figuren ‘Nine Dishes with brown 'Two Dishes, eight- rims, in three different sided, with brown rims, sizes, as One of the and frills, with the first, One of the second, Cornflower, and doublé and Seven of the third partridges, of the largest sort; known under the sort’23 From: Porcelain name of Mirror dishes, for Palaces: The Fashion or the Little man in the forJapan in Europe Well.’22 Collection 1650-1750, London, Rijksmuseum Amster 1990, p. 297 dam, BK-1968-233-B

Figure 12 > < Figure 13 'Six dishes, ten-sided, 'Two square little with brown rims and Dishes, the corners figurework, the doublé pinched, with brown Peacock with the rims, with the Hen and Peppertree, and the Cockerel, and flower- Reed bundle; being the and dragonwork on the second sort of size.’24 edge.’25 Collection Collection Rijksmuseum Groninger Museum Amsterdam, AK-RBK- Downloaded from Brill.com10/03/2021 07:28:38PM 14808-6 via free access Figure 14 > < Figure 15 Two ditto [octagonal ‘Six pair ditto [Teaware] jasmin bowls] with with the Bird of brown rims, the Dragon Paradise.’27 Collection on the edge, on the out- Rijksmuseum Amster side with Bouquets.’26 dam, BK-1968-239-2 Collection Rijksmuseum Amsterdam, AK-NM- 6399-A

Figure 16 > < Figure 17 Two square long- Two octagonal Bowls necked Bottles with the with brown flat rims, Pepper and Teatree, the inside with two with embroidery work Birds of Paradise, and on the neck, and with leafwork around the lids.’28 Collection edge; the outside with Rijksmuseum Amster föur bands red, and föur dam, BK-1968-260-B bands white ground; with the Pepper- and Teabranch, and Trees.’29 Collection Rijksmuseum Amster dam, AK-RBK-i96o-i43

Figure 18,19 > ‘A ten-sided Bowl with a flat brown rim, inside with two japanese and two Lions, the edge with leafwork; outside with two Japanese Women, figures with Sheaf and Flowerwork.’30

Collection Rijksmuseum < Figure 20 Amsterdam, AK-RBK- Two octagonal Bowls, 1977-13* > inside with Reed bundles and flower work.’31 Japan, 1670- 1690. Collection Twickel Foundation

The section for ‘Blue Japanese porcelains’ contains many pieces that can in all probability also be classified as Kakiemon. 87 pieces are described as having a brown rim, the overall majority shaped octagonal or otherwise, reminiscent of the characteristic Kakiemon products that were often made in a mould. One entry of ‘a tall hexagonal little pot, with lid, on each side with flowerwork’ is probably another jar of the Hampton Court type.32 Other identifiable items are the large lidded jar on figure 21, of which there is another example still in the Twickel collection,Downloaded and the from dish Brill.com10/03/2021 of the so-called 07:28:38PM Scheveningen design on figure 22. via free access 13

< Figure 21 ‘A large octagonal Chimney pot, with lid, with the Peacock, Pepper and Tea tree, the border above figured.’33 Japan, 1670-1690. Collection Twickel Foundation

Figure 22 ‘Three deep ten-sided Dishes, with brown rims, the farmers with the small buil on a string in a landscape.’34 Japan, 1670-1700. Collection Groninger Museum

Since the catalogue lists coloured Kakiemon separately, one would expect the other group of ‘Japanese coloured porcelains’ to be of a different category. This could be Imari-style porcelain and although we need to be wary of too certain an attribution, reading the descriptions does bring Imari to mind: ‘Two large vases with lids, and three sections, blue ground, with a bouquet, mosaic ground, and small coloured roses’; ‘a large octagonal pot, with lid, and a lion as a handle’; ‘a large tureen with lid, with figures and flowerwork’; ‘four large deep dishes, octagonal, with panels and bouquets in the centre’, or ‘six deep twelve-sided salad dishes, panels with fish, in the centre flowers and medallions’.35 Although the descriptions do not match entirely, the last three entries are reminiscent of similar pieces that are still in the Twickel collection (figs. 23-25).36 If we are indeed correct in thinking that this category is Imari,

then ‘Two large Japanese Women figures, well Downloadeddressed, fromand Brill.com10/03/2021 beautiful 07:28:38PM colours.’ may have resembled the doll in figure 26.37 via free access 0

Figure 23 > Covered bowl, Japan, early i8th century. Collection Twickel Foundation

Figure 24 » Dish, Japan, 1690-1720. Collection Twickel Foundation

Figure 25 > Dish, Japan, 1690-1720. Collection Twickel Foundation

Figure 26 » Figure, Japan, early i8th century. Collection Groninger Museum

• The inheritance of Jacoba Elisabeth van Strijen Naturally, it is highly improbable that an ancient house such as Twickel had only one source for its extensive collections. As we will discuss below, the Kneuterdijk was probably a major contributor to the present collection in Twickel, but there must have been many more. Over the centuries, inheritance from various sides must have imported many objects, and unknown quantities must have been disposed of in ways that cannot be traced. However, for some objects, the family tree may be of help to track a possible source. One such case is the Imari armorial porcelain that has been preserved in Twickel (fig. 27). A large dish and a set of three tea pots, one slop bowl, twelve tall chocolate cups and saucers, and eight tea cups and saucers all bear the coat of arms of the Bambeeck family. As mentioned earlier, the vast inheritance of Jacoba Elisabeth van Strijen was the single most important influx in the 18th century.38 Interestingly, she was related to the van Bambeeck family in two ways: through her first husband Dirk Trip and through her father Jacob van Strijen. It was probably through the latter that the armorial pieces came to Twickel. The 1756 inventory of Jacob’s possessions lists amongst others ‘six cups and six saucers with the Bambeeck coat of arms'. There are 300 further pieces in the inventory that may have belonged to this set.39 Although it is not certain that these all belonged to the same armorial set, the surviving pieces in Twickel suggest that they are the remains of a larger ensemble. It may have belonged to Jacob van Strijen’s

uncle Nicolaas van Bambeeck (1665-1722), whoDownloaded was burgomaster from Brill.com10/03/2021 of 07:28:38PM Amsterdam intermittently from 1711 to 1722. In his position, he wouldvia have free access Figure 27 had both the use for an extensive set and the contacts within the VOC to be Part of a tea set, Japan, able to order one.40 early i8th century. Collection Twickel • The 1812 inventory of Twickel Foundation When Jacob Unico died in 1812, Twickel was inventoried. It will come as no surprise that after the last inventory of 1713, the number of ceramics had increased to around 760 pieces. Eating practice now dictated that extensive sets of matching tableware were required and in Twickel a dinner service, white with a yellow border, accounts for a third with 227 pieces. Otherwise, descriptions are only specific in very few cases. Often, it is not even clear whether porcelain was Chinese, Japanese or European. An exception is the entry of ‘six square Japanese dessert dishes’, which may refer to two such dishes still at Twickel (fig. 28). The location was ‘in the pantry’, where a great deal of Japanese porcelain is still stored today.41

• 1816: the sale of Kneuterdijk A century after it had been built, the Kneuterdijk property left the van Wassenaers’ hands. After the death of Jacoba Elisabeth van Strijen in 1816, the van Wassenaer Obdam role had virtually come to an end. There was no male heir and Marie Cornélie, the only surviving member of the family, was still underage. Ownership of Twickel was soon to be transferred and in 1816, Kneuterdijk was sold to King William I, who donated it to his son.

It is assumed that the contents of the KneuterdijkDownloaded went fromto Twickel, Brill.com10/03/2021 although 07:28:38PM it is hardly conceivable that everything was kept. Twickel was a fully furnishedvia free access 0

Figure 28 > Dish, Japan, 1660-1680. Collection Twickel Foundation

Figure 29 » Dish, Japan, 1670-1700. Collection Twickel Foundation

house and it is unlikely that the large amounts of furniture and objects from Kneuterdijk were incorporated completely. For ceramics alone, the 1816 inventory lists around 2,500 pieces at the Kneuterdijk, among which were 5 dinner services.42 Again, the descriptions of the pieces themselves are very unspecific, but the arrangement in the rooms is interesting. The vast majority was stored in cupboards, which in most cases were built into the wall. However, the Marot fashion of arranging porcelain persisted in five rooms, where porcelain was displayed around the chimney: often with pieces such as tea pots, cups and saucers together with soapstone figures, while larger pots stood in the fireplace. There were also garniture sets, and various tables bore arrangements of porcelain, mostly tea sets and often in large quantities.43

The present collection in Twickel

It is unlikely that Kakiemon porcelain entered the Twickel household in any quantities after 1816. Had this happened, it would have indicated a marked interest by one of the inhabitants, of which we would be aware. So far, the 19th century documents have not yielded any references to purchases of old porcelain, although the inhabitants, members of the van Heeckeren family, kept many diaries and stored invoices in a meticulous manner. Any serious collecting activities would surely have been noted down. Furthermore, the present collection of Kakiemon contains numerous sets. Stacks and stacks of high-quality blue-and-white Kakiemon small dishes, cups and saucers fill the cupboards. Of the small dish illustrated in figure 29, 15 pieces exist in three sizes - the remains of a much larger set. Given the slight wear marks, they may well have been used occasionally as tableware, like the square dessert dishes mentioned above.44 The larger blue-and-white and the coloured pieces may have been predominantly for display, but again wear marks indicate incidental use.

Several other designs on dishes exist in two or more sizes, for example the

dishes in figure 30.1 believe that the frequent occurrenceDownloaded from of Brill.com10/03/2021 sets is an 07:28:38PM indication for an old collection. Large sets of identical pieces could be boughtvia free access Figure 30 new in the late 17th century, or from previous owners in the early 18th Three dishes, Japan, century, when sales were held of the possessions of the first-generation 1670-1690. Collection buyers. The collecting activities of Johan Hendrik may fall into the latter Twickel Foundation category. Given the continued popularity of Kakiemon and its consequent high price, the later 18th century may also have provided opportunities to buy larger groups. The 1769 sale is evidence of this. In later years, collections would have been dispersed, and when Kakiemon regained popularity in the later 19th and early 20th centuries, it had become impossible to bring together such a coherent and extensive group.

A last characteristic is the occurrence of pieces that were destined for the Japanese domestic market, such as the dish in figure 31. These must have been difficult to acquire. They were decorated in Japanese taste, not exported

in great quantities and therefore probably relativelyDownloaded expensive from Brill.com10/03/2021 for European 07:28:38PM collectors. via free access Figure 31 It is worth noting the similarities to the collection of Burghley House in Dish, Japan, 1670-1700. England, at least partly documented to the late 17th century. Here too we find Collection Twickel cupboards filled with a very similar range: domestic market pieces, large Foundation quantities of high-quality blue-and-white Kakiemon dishes and cups and saucers, combined with a number of coloured pieces. The Twickel collection may well be rare and extremely important tracés of Kakiemon as collected around 1700: both for use and for display, it represented the ultimate in luxury.

Notes

With thanks to Harriet Impey for editing the article, and to Dirk Jan Biemond and Jan van Campen for their suggestions and comments.

1. ‘[...1 hier moetende leeven, ik genootsaekt ben te observeeren, hetgeen convenaebel is aen mijn geboorte, en fatzoen, en volgens de rang, en digniteijten, die onse voorouders tot nogh toe, in dese republyk hebben bekleet’, HAT (Huisarchief Twickel) 451, Taxatiestaat en memorie van Johan Hendrik van Wassenaer Obdam inzake aan hem en zijn broer Unico Wilhelm te delen porties in de nalatenschap van Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam, 1717. 2. ‘6 vande groote booter schoteltes met tulpe daer in geschildert’, HAT 352, Lijsten van archiefstukken, meubels, gouden en zilveren voorwerpen en porselein in het huis van Jacob van Wassenaer Obdam aan de Kneuterdijk in ’s-Gravenhage, 1676. 3. ‘De camer booven aan straet [...] de schoorsteen verciert met porcelaine daer van een aparte list is overgelevert’, ibid. 4. See T. Wijsenbeek-Olthuis (ed.), Het Lange Voorhout: Monumenten, Mensen en Macht, Zwolle and Den Haag, 1998, pp. 81, 82; C.W. Fock, Het Nederlandse interieur Downloaded from Brill.com10/03/2021 07:28:38PM in beeld 1600-1900, Zwolle, 2001, pp. 44-46. via free access 19 5. '[...]een fraijen imboel, bestaende in tapijten ende andere Camer behanghsels, damasten en ouden Ledikanten daer onder een kleijn root damast met gout galon beddens, matrassen, tafels, spiegels, stoelen, cabinetten en nogh veelerhande soorte van fraije Japanse en Chinese oude en nieuwe porceleijnen, soo gecouleurt als blauw, synde kraek schotels en kommen van verscheijde groote, potten, fleschen, rolwagens, grote pagoden, chocolaat, coffij theegoet, treckpotten en ook eenigh moije lack werck, mineralen en verder Rariteijten HAT 543, Gekwiteerde rekeningen en kwitanties voor Johan Hendrik van Wassenaer Obdam wegens particuliere uitgaven aan: stangemakers, hoeden en aanverwanten, medische zorg, kleermakers, granen, pruikmakers, schrijfloon, porselein, wielemakers, thee, brouwers, proceskosten, haver en hooi, wijnkopers, boeken en prenten, boekbinders, diversen, 1713-1744. 6. In that year, Johan Hendrik was able to purchase a third, adjacent property after the death of its owner, Jacob van der Meer. See Het Lange Voorhout, op.cit. (note 4), p. 279. 7. HAT 543. Needless to say, it is extremely rare to find detailed, early-18th-century documentation of the purchase of Asian objects. I must admit to feeling rather like a child in a sweet shop as I leafed through the piles of papers and found one invoice after another. 8. ‘1. Boek Chineesse Theekeni6: f 235 [...] A* 3 stuks Chineesse Theeke6 75’, Vincent Posthumus, Amsterdam, 1 April 1728; ‘Une hute de chinois et tartares wateau en trois livres un grand, et 2. plus petits en 32. feuïl.’, f 15, B. Picart, Amsterdam, 20 March 1732. 9. ‘Twee ditto [verlakt doosie] als Claverblaedies f70, door J.C. Ravens gekogt op het Boelhuijs van de vrouwe van S* Annelandt’, 6 November 1725. 10. ‘2 afgodies f 21:15’, [verso] ‘Lac Afgottie’, ‘by van der Burg Van Laar’, J.C. Ravens, The Hague, 19 April 1719. These were probably little Buddhist figures of buddhas or bodhisattvas, possibly belonging to a travel shrine. 11. This is excluding the premium that ranged from 2.5 to nearly 9 per cent. 12. Based on 300 working days of 18 stuivers per day (1 guilder is 12 stuivers). J. de Vries and A. Van der Woude, Nederland 1500-1815: de eerste ronde van moderne economische groei, Amsterdam, 1995, pp. 703-709. 13. ‘11 schotels extra oud Japans coeleurd Porcelijn’, ‘Twee seskante Japansche potten gecouleurt porcellein'. The signature on the invoice of fig. 8 corresponds to another invoice in the archives that States J.C. Ravens in The Hague as the dealer. 14. For an extensive discussion of Kakiemon, see my forthcoming publication. 15. C. Gerretson and P. Geyl (eds.), Briefwisseling en aantekeningen van Willem Bentinck, heer van Rhoon, Vol. 1, The Hague, 1934, p. 120. 16. Willem Bentinck was the son of Hans Willem Bentinck (1649-1709) from his second marriage, and the Duchess of Portland’s husband (William Bentinck, 2nd Duke of Portland (1709-1762)) was the grandson of Hans Willem Bentinck from his first marriage. The Duchess was therefore Willem's half niece by marriage. The lst Duke of Portland, William’s father, was Henry Bentinck, the second son of Hans Willem Bentinck’s first marriage. 17. CATALOGUS Van de Wydvermaarde en alom bekende KABINETTEN met RARITEITEN En KOSTBAARHEEDEN. Bestaande in Een Overheerlijk Kabinet van de Alleroudste en Gecouleurde, zoo Japanse als Chineese PORCELYNEN, Waar onder veele van de Eerste Classe met de bruine rand [...] Alles in veel Jaaren met keurige kennisse byeen vergaderd en nagelaten by Wylen den Hoog Edele Gebooren Heer JAN HENDRIK, Graave en Baanderheere van en tot Wassenaar en Zuydwyk, Heere van Obdam, Hensbroek, Spierdyk, Lage, Keernhem &c. &c. &c. [...] Alle het welke Publicq verkogt zal werden op Woensdag den 25 October 1769. en volgende dagen, tot Amsterdam, ten huize van A. Dankmeyer, Castelein in ’f Oude Zyds Heeren Logement. Door de Makelaars Jacob Posthumus, Jan Lambers, Jan Lambers de Jonge en Pieter Posthumus. [...] (Lugt 1784). In 1728, Johan Hendrik bought Chinese drawings from a certain Vincent Posthumus in Amsterdam, see note 8. One wonders whether Jacob and Pieter Posthumus were relatives of the former.Downloaded from Brill.com10/03/2021 07:28:38PM via free access 20 18. ‘Oude gecouleurde Japansche porceleinen. van de eerste classe.', ‘Blaauwe Japansche porceleinen.’, ‘Japans gecouleurde porceleinen.’, ‘Gecouleurde Chineesche porceleinen.’, Blaauwe Chineesche porceleinen’, ‘porcelynen voor fruyten &c.’, ibid., pp. 1, 12, 21, 16, 17, 8. 19. ‘44. Twee langwerpige Bloembekers, om voor een Schoorsteen te hangen, met bladeren en rankwerk, verbeeldende een Vrugt.' (Two elongated Flower beakers, to hang on a Chimney(piece), with leaves and scrollwork, depicting a Fruit.), ‘46. Drie lange vierkante Bloembekers om tegens een Schoorsteen te hangen, met mozaik en bloemwerk.’ (Three rectangular Flower beakers to hang on a Chimney(piece), with mosaic and flowerwork), ibid., p. 5. The former may have been similar to the one illustrated in J. Ayers, O. Impey, J.V.G. Mallet, Porcelain for Palaces: The Fashion for Japan in Europe 1650-1750, London, 1990, fig. 214, p. 210; the latter may have resembled fig. 112, p. 146. 20. ‘69. Twee zeskantige Paauwpotten met Dekzels en Bouquetten, met mozaike randen van boven.’, ibid., p. 7. 21. Apart from the two bought in 1725, another set of two was purchased in 1733: ‘twee couleurde ses kante potte’ (two coloured hexagonal jars) f 460, ‘op de vercooping van Juffe: van Ankeveen’, Amsterdam, Paulus Theroude, 26 August, 1733. HAT 543. The catalogue’s six pieces are listed under nrs. 69-71. 22. ‘N. 1. Negen Schotels met bruine randen, in drie verscheidene grootens, als Een van de derde soort; Een van de tweede, en Seven van de derde soort; bekend onder de naam van Spiegelschotels, of ’t Mannetje in de Put.’, ibid., p. 1. 23. ‘2. Twee Schotels, agtkant, met bruine randen, en Valbalas, met de Koorenblom, en dubbelde Patrysjes, van de grootste soort.’, ibid., p. 1. Valbalas is after the French falbala. 24. ‘4. Ses Schotels, tienkantig, met bruine randen en figuurwerk, de dubbelde Paauw met de Peeperboom, en de Rietbos; zijnde de tweede soort van grootte’, ibid., p. 1. 25. ‘13. Twee vierkante Schoteltjes, de hoeken ingeneepen, met bruine randen, met het Hennetje en Haantje, en bloem- en draak-werk in de rand.’, ibid., p. 2. 26. ‘32. Twee dito [agtkante Jasmin Kommen] met bruine randen, de Draak in de rand, van buiten met Bouquetten.’, ibid., p. 4. 27. ‘38. Ses paar dito [Theegoed] met de paradysvogel.’, ibid., p. 4. 28. ‘39. Twee vierkante langhalsde Flessen met de Peeper en Theeboom, met borduurwerk aan den hals, en dopjes daarop.’, ibid., p. 4. Bottles such as these originally had a stopper, see for instance F. Reichel, Early Japanese Porcelain, Arita Porcelain in the Dresden Collection, London, 1981, PI. 91. 29. ‘61. Twee agtkantige Kommen met bruine platte randen, van binnen met twee Paradysvogels, en lofwerk om de rand; van buiten met vierbands roode, en vier wittebands grond; met de Peeper- en Theetak, en Boomen.’, ibid., p. 6. 30. ‘62. Een tienkantige Kom met een platte bruine rand, van binnen met twee Japoneesen en twee Leeuwen, de rand met lofwerk; van buiten met twee Japoneese Vrouwen, figuren met Schoof en Bloemwerk.’, ibid., p. 7. 31. ‘65. Twee agtkantige Kommen, van binnen met Rietbossen en bloemwerk.’, ibid., p. 7. 32. See for instance the piece in the Ashmolean Museum: O.R. Impey, Japanese Export Porcelain: Catalogue of the collection of the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford, Amsterdam, 2002, nr. 104, p. 99. 33. ‘132. Een groote agtkante Schoorsteenpot, met deksel, met de Paauw, Peeper en Theeboom, de rand van boven gefigureert.’, op. cit. (note 17), p. 12. 34. ‘141. Drie diepe tienkantige Bakjes, met bruine randen, de boere met het bulletje aan een touwen landschap.’, ibid., p. 13. 35. ‘239. Twee groote Vaasen met Dekzels, en drie Compartimenten, blaauwe grond, met een Bouquet, Mozaique grond en kleine gecouleurde Rozen.’, ‘240 Een groote agtkante Pot, met Dekzel, en een Leeuw daarop voor handvat.’, ‘241. Een groote Therine met Dekzel, met figuuren en bloemwerk’, ‘247. Vier groote diepe Schotels, agtkant, met Vakwerk en Bouquetten in ’t midden.’, ‘248. Ses diepe twaalfkantige Saladebakken, vakwerk met vissen, in ’t midden bloemenDownloaded en from medailles. Brill.com10/03/2021’, ibid., p. 07:28:38PM 21. via free access 0 36. Although the two dishes may be classified as Imari, they were actually made in workshops in the Nangawara district of Arita, where the kilns were located that produced Kakiemon porcelain. 37. ‘242. Twee groote Japanse Vrouwe Beelden, wel gekleed, en schoone couleuren.’, ibid., p. 21. 38. The inventories of her father and her brother Quirijn both list large numbers of porcelain: HAT 990, Inventaris van de nalatenschap van Jacob van Strijen, 1756; HAT 1015, Akte van scheiding en deling van de nalatenschap van Quirijn van Bambeeck van Strijen, 1793. 39. ‘ses kopjes en ses schoteltjes met Bambeekse Wapen’ [...] ‘a large armorial dish’ (Een grote wapenschotel) [...] ‘two large dishes armorial ware; six ditto smaller; two ditto smaller subsequently, twenty ditto round deep dessert dishes; eight ditto with flat rims; twenty nine dishes; four ditto large dishes; fourteen ditto smaller; eighteen ditto smaller subsequently; thirty ditto dishes; twenty three ditto dessert dishes, with flat rims; twenty four ditto tea pots; thirty ditto choclate cups with saucers and lids; six ditto slop bowls; six dozen ditto tea ware, minus one cup’ (Twe grote schotels Wapengoed; Ses dito klynder; Twe dito klynder daaropvolgende; Twintig dito ronde holle desert schaaltjes; Agt dito met platte randen; negen en twintig borden; Vier dito grote schotels; Veertien dito klynders; Agtien dito klynder daar op volgende; Dertig dito borden; drie en twintig dito desert schoteltjes, met platte randen; Tien ronde dito schaatjes; Vier en twintig dito Trekpotten; dertig dito chocolade koppen met de schotels & deksels; Ses dito spoelkommen; Ses douzijn dito thegoed, min Een kopje). Of course, a large list with a subsequent ‘ditto’ is no guarantee for all these pieces to be armorial, but it is certainly possible, since for instance ‘dito tea pots’ does indicate an additional characteristic. HAT 990, fol. 67 verso, 68. 40. See also C.J.A. Jörg, Fine & Curious: Japanese Export Porcelain in Dutch collections, Amsterdam, 2003, nos. 297, 298, pp. 233-235. 41. ‘in de Provisie kamer [...] zes vierkante Japansche dissertschoteltjes’, HAT 771, Taxatiestaten van de onroerende goederen en uitgezette kapitalen in de boedel van Jacob Unico Wilhelm van Wassenaer Obdam, 1812. 42. One is a ‘Saxon service’ (Saxisch servies). Twickel has a Meissen service that may be the same set. 43. Porcelain stood around the chimney in: ‘the dressing room’ (de Kapkamer); an unspecified bedroom; the ‘room of My Lord van Strijen’ (de kamer van de Heer van Strijen) - this presumably is a mistake and must be Jacoba Elisabeth’s room - ; the ‘cabinet near the Yellow room’ (het cabinetje bij de Geele kamer); ‘the green room’ (de groene kamer) and ‘the Chinese room’ (Chineesche Kamer). Porcelain was displayed on tables in the ‘Hall or Gallery’ (Zaal of Gallerij); the ‘downstairs red room’ (beneden roode kamer) and the ‘so called Oak room next to the green Room’ (het zo genaamd Eike houte kamertje naast de groene Kamer). HAT 740a, Inventaris van de roerende goederen in de nalatenschap van Jacoba Elisabeth van Strijen in het huis aan de Kneuterdijk, ’s Gravenhage, 1816. 44. The use of porcelain for dessert is specifically mentioned in a mid-18lh-century book for household management: S. van Esveldt, De volmaakte Hollandsche keuken meid, Amsterdam, 1752, p. 137.

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