Gulf of Naples

Massive boulders jut into this landscape from the left, flowing directly into the sea. The atmosphere is warm, while behind the rocks lies the Gulf of Naples bathed in golden light. The characteristic outline of the Vesuvius volcano can be seen on the horizon, shrouded in a light mist. Three men linger on the rocks. The figure in the middle is a fisherman, standing in shorts and shirt with his back to the viewer, looking out to sea. In his hands he holds a basket; a fishing rod is slung over his shoulder. To the left, a man leans against a rock, his upper torso bare. Like the fisherman, he is wearing shorts and has placed his red T-shirt over his eyes as protection from the sun or for a nap. The Düsseldorf painter Oswald Achenbach captures in this work the vastness and light of the sea near Naples. Drawing the viewer directly into the scene, Achenbach’s painting style conveys the longing for Italy that was particularly widespread in Germany in the 19th century.