From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama

During the preparations for the Rijksmuseum depot’s move to its new location, Collectie Centrum Nederland (CCNL) in 2018, a hand-painted scenic landscape on paper that is 2,309 centimetres long and 180 centimetres high came to light. Together with five broadly similar, but shorter pieces, the group...

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Main Authors: Maud van Suylen, Idelette van Leeuwen, Dafne Diamante, Femke Coevert
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: The Rijksmuseum Publications Department 2022-06-01
Series:The Rijksmuseum Bulletin
Online Access:https://bulletin.rijksmuseum.nl/article/view/12234
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author Maud van Suylen
Idelette van Leeuwen
Dafne Diamante
Femke Coevert
author_facet Maud van Suylen
Idelette van Leeuwen
Dafne Diamante
Femke Coevert
author_sort Maud van Suylen
collection DOAJ
description During the preparations for the Rijksmuseum depot’s move to its new location, Collectie Centrum Nederland (CCNL) in 2018, a hand-painted scenic landscape on paper that is 2,309 centimetres long and 180 centimetres high came to light. Together with five broadly similar, but shorter pieces, the group of objects was briefly described on a museum inventory card in 1962 as six rolls of wallpaper. After extensive research and conservation, it now appears that four of these are in fact fragments of a moving panorama. More specifically, they have been identified as surviving parts of what was known as the Reuzen-Cyclorama (Giant Cyclorama) or Cyclorama Reichardt, named after its German owner, Ferdinand Reichardt (b. 1813). This particular moving panorama, originally measuring an astounding one and a half kilometres, was an extraordinary phenomenon that is documented as having travelled through the Netherlands, Belgium and Great Britain between 1853 and 1855. It was shown to the public, rolled between two wooden poles and accompanied by music or storytelling, in order to give people an experience of travelling the regions of Tyrol, Switzerland and Italy. The article will follow the interdisciplinary quest undertaken by curators and conservators that led to the compelling new understanding of the purpose of these long-forgotten lengthy paper landscapes in the Rijksmuseum’s collection.
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spelling doaj.art-9699a1b5f9a14a7aa9c31957e8ecd7ce2022-12-22T03:31:30ZengThe Rijksmuseum Publications DepartmentThe Rijksmuseum Bulletin1877-81272772-61262022-06-0170210.52476/trb.12234From Wallpaper to Moving PanoramaMaud van SuylenIdelette van LeeuwenDafne DiamanteFemke Coevert During the preparations for the Rijksmuseum depot’s move to its new location, Collectie Centrum Nederland (CCNL) in 2018, a hand-painted scenic landscape on paper that is 2,309 centimetres long and 180 centimetres high came to light. Together with five broadly similar, but shorter pieces, the group of objects was briefly described on a museum inventory card in 1962 as six rolls of wallpaper. After extensive research and conservation, it now appears that four of these are in fact fragments of a moving panorama. More specifically, they have been identified as surviving parts of what was known as the Reuzen-Cyclorama (Giant Cyclorama) or Cyclorama Reichardt, named after its German owner, Ferdinand Reichardt (b. 1813). This particular moving panorama, originally measuring an astounding one and a half kilometres, was an extraordinary phenomenon that is documented as having travelled through the Netherlands, Belgium and Great Britain between 1853 and 1855. It was shown to the public, rolled between two wooden poles and accompanied by music or storytelling, in order to give people an experience of travelling the regions of Tyrol, Switzerland and Italy. The article will follow the interdisciplinary quest undertaken by curators and conservators that led to the compelling new understanding of the purpose of these long-forgotten lengthy paper landscapes in the Rijksmuseum’s collection. https://bulletin.rijksmuseum.nl/article/view/12234
spellingShingle Maud van Suylen
Idelette van Leeuwen
Dafne Diamante
Femke Coevert
From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama
The Rijksmuseum Bulletin
title From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama
title_full From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama
title_fullStr From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama
title_full_unstemmed From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama
title_short From Wallpaper to Moving Panorama
title_sort from wallpaper to moving panorama
url https://bulletin.rijksmuseum.nl/article/view/12234
work_keys_str_mv AT maudvansuylen fromwallpapertomovingpanorama
AT idelettevanleeuwen fromwallpapertomovingpanorama
AT dafnediamante fromwallpapertomovingpanorama
AT femkecoevert fromwallpapertomovingpanorama