View of the Valkhof, Nijmegen

View of the Valkhof, Nijmegen from 1655 by Cuyp at Woburn Abbey depicts the ancient Roman fortress site that dominated the city of Nijmegen. The Valkhof was one of the most dramatic sites in the Dutch landscape, its hilltop ruins providing romantic interest above the broad Waal river. Cuyp worked primarily in Dordrecht throughout his career, and his paintings of the Dutch countryside—cattle in golden light, river views, and horsemen against luminous skies—established him as one of the most technically accomplished landscape painters of the Dutch Golden Age.

The hilltop ruins are silhouetted against a warm, golden sky in Cuyp's signature manner, the elevated viewpoint revealing the river valley in an atmospheric panorama of characteristic luminosity.