The Solebay Tapestries: Threads of History

The monumental 17th century Solebay Tapestry series captures the first major naval battle of the third Anglo-Dutch war (1672-1674), which took place off the coast of England. Of the 12 tapestries created after drawings by the artist Willem van de Velde the Elder (who witnessed the battle firsthand), two are in the collection of the National Maritime Museum in Amsterdam. The first tapestry shows the burning of the flagship of the English fleet, the Royal James. The other depicts the two war fleets as they line up in a long line, ready to continue the battle the next morning. This is the first book in a series that highlights the objects in the National Maritime Museum of the Netherlands.