A Distant View of Dordrecht, with a Sleeping Herdsman and Five Cows ('The Small Dort'), Aelbert Cuyp (1650)
Most of Cuyp’s clients were wealthy merchants in his hometown of Dordrecht, and several had land and property in the countryside beyond; almost certainly they would have had an interest in dairy farming. Cows were a national success story. The seventeenth century had seen increasing improvements in breeding stock, better feeding practice and reclamation of flooded land – low-lying pasture was much better for cattle than sheep. Cheese and butter were not only national staples, they were now key exports. In short, cattle represented wealth, peaceful prosperity and plenty.
