By Simone | 30th October 2018
At Noordeinde 164, in the Hague, not far from the King’s Working Palace, one will find a beautiful 17th-century antique gallery: S. van Leeuwen. After more than 100 years of selling beautiful antique furniture, the shop is closing its doors. In collaboration with the gallery, we've organised a special auction this week with 74 carefully selected objects. The S. Van Leeuwen Collection auction has already started and will close on the 7th of November. Our antique expert, Dési van Rhee, tells us a little bit more about the collection and the history of this extraordinary antique gallery.
A tour around the gallery
S. Van Leeuwen was founded in 1914 by Salomon van Leeuwen and taken over in 1970 by his son and current owner Alexander. In the gallery, you can find various antiques from the 17th, 18th and early 19th century, as well as interesting collectors’ items. To get an impression of what the gallery looked and felt like, let’s take you on a little tour.
These items are part of the Van Leeuwen Collection (26th October - 7th november).
On the way in a large and fully dressed mahogany extending dining table immediately catches the eye, with a large mahogany library bookcase behind it. A pleasant fire is burning in an antique fireplace and 18th-century chandeliers adorn the ceiling. The passion of Alexander for oriental porcelain and silver is omnipresent.
The kitchen on the ground floor at the Noordeinde 164 is still in its original state from the first quarter of the 18th century. Around 1900, the ground floor of the property was changed into a gallery. Thus renewed, the Jugendstil front, made of teakwood and a panel of tiles made by The Holland Factory, is one of the most beautiful in the Hague
These items are part of the Van Leeuwen Collection (26th October - 7th november).
Famous inhabitants
The Noordeinde 164 property is well known for some of its inhabitants and visitors.
One of its famous inhabitants was the architect, furniture designer and engraver Daniel Marot, who lived at the Noordeinde 164 from 1717 until the end of his life. The Marot family were Huguenots and were part of the wave of émigrés who left France in the year of the Edict of Fontainebleau and Revocation of the Edict of Nantes (1685) to settle in Holland.
Daniel Marot brought the fully developed court style of Louis XIV to Holland, and later to London. In the end, the English style which is loosely called "William and Mary" owed much to his manner. In the Netherlands, Marot was employed by the Stadthouder Willem III, who later became William III of England.
Portrait of Daniel Marot - Jacob Gole, after James Parmentier. Line engraving , late 17th century. Collection: National Portrait Gallery, ref: NPG D31305
Daniel Marot is particularly associated with designing interiors in the palace of Het Loo (from 1684 on), the design of the great hall of audience (Trêves Zaal) for the States-General at the Hague and, after the death of William (1707), the design for the Kneuterdijk Palace in The Hague (1717).
The garden of Noordeinde 164, also known as the “Couperus Garden”, is famous for one of its visitors: Louis Couperus (1863-1923): of the nations greatest writers. Couperus, well acquainted with the antique dealer Salomon van Leeuwen, spent many hours writing in the garden behind the shop. One of the last pictures of Louis Couperus was actually taken in this garden (1923) in which you can see him seated on the garden bench in front of the very old Beech tree, together with his dog Brinio. Several years ago the Noordeinde 164 was declared a monument.
Louis Couperus en Brinio in de tuin van Van Leeuwen achter het Noordeinde in het voorjaar van 1923. Onbekende fotograaf. Bron: Wikipedia.org
About The S. Van Leeuwen Collection
The auction comprises fine furniture such as a Directoire games table with removable Tric-Trac game board attributed to Chapuis; various silver such as an extensive set of 19th century Russian flatware and interesting porcelain collectables such as a rare pair of Kangxi teapots decorated with flowering vases and a polychrome mid 18th century Dutch Delftware plaque painted with a topographical scene. Needless to say, all items meet the renowned Van Leeuwen high-quality standards. If you want to take a look at the items in person, then you can visit the gallery during its viewing days on Saturday 3th November and Sunday 4th of November 2018 from 10 am to 4 pm.
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The S. Van Leeuwen Collection auction has already started and will close on the 7th of November.
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