Vermeer's Delft Today: Beestenmarkt¹

a period map of Delft showing the Beestenmarkt

"Towards the end of the 15th c., Vermeer's, grandfather, a tailor named Jan, lived with his wife and three children in a house called Nassau, abutting the Beestenmarkt. In those days, common people had no last names. Both men and women were identified by by their fathers' Christian names. Jan was known accordingly as "the son of Reynier" (in Dutch, Reynyerszoon, abbreviated Reyersz)."²

"The present Beestenmarkt has partly been the location of a former monastery of the Minderbroeders (Minor Friars), belonging to the order of St. Franciscus. In 1499 the Minor Friars got the permission to settle in Delft. They built a monastery with a comparatively large chapel. The building comprised c. one third of the present place and was situated southeast of the Burgwal. In the course of the Reformation the monastery was demolished in 1595 and the place was used for the weekly cattle market, hence its Dutch name 'Beestenmarkt'. But the street name 'Broerhuisstraat' (in former times Grote Broerhuissteg), leaving from one of the corners of Beestenmarkt, still refers to this former monastery."³ Most of the people living around the Beestenmarkt were illiterate.

Beestenmarkt 26 (location of the former The Three Hammers),
corner Broerhuisstraat.
The Hotel De Koophandel
comprises the numbers
26 to 32. The ground floor of
No. 26 is leased to a pub.

The Beestenmarkt played an significant role in the life of the parents of Johannes Vermeer. Reynier (Vermeer's father) lived in Nassau from his birth in 1591 until the death of his father Jan (Vermeer's grandfather) in 1597. Neeltge Goris (Vermeer's grandmother) married in the same year the tailor and musician Claes Corstiaensz, a professional musician , and moved with her three children (Jan, Anthony and Maertge, uncle and aunt of Vermeer) to his house De Drie Hamers (The Three Hammers) (present Beestenmarkt 26). That means that Reynier lived in this house, together with the family of his stepfather, from 1597 until c. 1611, when he went for his apprenticeship in Amsterdam.

Neeltge Goris lived on Voldersgracht nr. 3 in the house In de Bruynvisch (see image below). She was active as "uijtdraegster" or second-hand-goods dealer, liquidating estates of the deceased. Since paintings were often a part of these estates, Neeltge's dealing in works of art may have kindled the interest of her son Reynier in this commodity. This active woman also sold bedding and promoted lottaries. Her third husband was a ship's carpenter. Women from the lower classes were forced to remarry quickly since they had little or no social protection to speak of.

Reynier, Vermeer's father, went to Amsterdam to learn the trade of a silk-linen weaver (caffawerker) and married Digna Baltens from Antwerp. The couple lived in De Drie Hamers (the Three Hammers) where their daughter Geertruy was born in 1620. Reynier used the name Vermeer for the first time in 1640. Last names were not necessary in Vermer's time. We do not know why Reynier chose Vermeer but his brother was already using it at the time.

The public Vermeer information stand on Beestenmarkt indicating the birthplace of Reynier Jansz.Vos (no. 14) is erroneous. The house numbers 14 and 26 are interchanged.

Voldersgracht nr. 3
(the narrow facade to the right)'
The larger building to the left is the "Vleeshal" (Meat market).
photo by Pieter Haringsma