Image: public domain, courtesy of Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

The Feast of St Nicholas

Jan Steen, 1665–68

On the feast of St Nicholas, good Dutch children got treats, while naughty ones found a birch rod in their shoe. Here a happy girl holds a doll and a bucket of sweets, while a boy on the left is crying.

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Did you know?

Look for the boy in the middle holding a kolf club, from an old Dutch game a bit like golf.
In the background the grandmother beckons the crying boy; perhaps a present is hidden for him behind the curtain.
Look for the basket of gingerbread, cakes and bread rolls on the floor.
Near the fireplace, young people are singing a St Nicholas song.
The Dutch still call a messy, lively home a Jan Steen household.

About the artist

Jan Steen (c. 1626–1679) was born in Leiden and worked there as well as in The Hague, Delft and Haarlem.

He is famous for cheerful, crowded scenes of family life, feasts and taverns, such as The Feast of St Nicholas, full of humor and little life lessons.

His painted homes are so delightfully chaotic that the Dutch still call a messy household “a Jan Steen household”, and in 1672 he really did open a tavern in Leiden.

Jan Steen ›

Where it is today: Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam · Museum page