Existing comment:
Anthonie de Lorme
Interior of the Church of St. Laurens in Rotterdam, ca 1657
Paintings of church interiors were popular in the Northern Netherlands as they made an important statement about a major difference in religious practices between the northern and southern regions. While Catholics in the Southern Netherlands commissioned paintings to decorate their churches, Calvinists in the north did not because the use of paintings for devotion was considered idolatrous. Shields and banners representing the devoted parishioners punctuated the whitewashed walls of their churches instead.
Church interior paintings often include dogs. A common sight in churches at the time, it is likely that they convey a moral message that humans, unlike the dog relieving himself against the church wall (left), should respect the church and the promise of salvation for which it is the vehicle. Though church interior paintings do not represent a specific religious subject to be used for devotion, they no doubt inspired religious contemplation and reminded viewers of the importance and beauty of such holy places. |