The Oostpoort - Delft

The Oostpoort itself does not have much to do with Johannes Vermeer, although our hero must have passed under it. His world was not that small! What matters to us now is that the Oostpoort is the only remaining city gate of Delft. The town was once surrounded by a sturdy wall, with no fewer than eight gates as entry points.

In the nineteenth century, the expansion of the city took up the space that the seven other gates occupied. The Oostpoort was spared and gives a good impression of what a city gate once looked like in Delft, like the Rotterdamse Poort and the Schiedamse Poort that are depicted in ‘View of Delft’. This brings us back to the master Vermeer, who painted his famous cityscape not so far from here.

Just think that this gate may be standing here so resplendent with self-confidence, but that it is actually a miracle that it still exists. Also consider the model makers who spend hours faithfully recreating this sturdy structure. That also has nothing to do with Vermeer, but it is still nice to know.