A Landscape with an Italian Hill Town
- Artist: Hendrik Frans van Lint
- Date: 1700-26
- Medium: oil on canvas
- Museum: The National Gallery
- Collection record: The National Gallery website
Listen to the free audio guide
About this artwork
This is "A Landscape with an Italian Hill Town" painted in the Italian north by Hendrik Frans van Lint. You can see the soft, clear light of Italy that was so popular among Northern European audiences at this time. Van Lint has chosen a cooler sky to emphasize the sombre grey walls of the castle.
Notice how he's added classical figures to enhance the grandeur and lyricism of the scene. The strolling couple in the foreground are thought to be Aeneas, the Trojan hero, and the Sibyl, a priestess of Apollo who told fortunes. She predicted his death after many battles, but agreed to guide him through the underworld before his troubles began.
Van Lint was part of a group of Dutch and Flemish artists who returned from Italy with a passion for painting its landscapes. They shared their experiences with Northern European audiences, and this painting is a great example of that.
See it in person
A Landscape with an Italian Hill Town hangs in The National Gallery on Trafalgar Square, London — free to enter. Point your phone at any artwork there and audioguide.london plays a free audio guide in six languages — no app download needed.
