Anton Koster: A Dome with Legs - The Tea Pavilion Bosch en Hoven
Updated: Aug 29
As a child, I often drove through Aerdenhout with my father. We were either visiting family in Bentveld or heading to the beaches of Zandvoort. My father hated traffic jams, so he avoided the main road to Zandvoort whenever he could. Instead, we took the winding backroads, lined with towering trees that seemed to have stood there for centuries. One of these roads is the Bentveldsweg. At the junction with the Zwarteweg, at the foot of a hill, there was always something that caught my eye. A tall, elegant and slightly forlorn tea pavilion stood among the trees, visible from the road.
Its Baroque ornamentation seemed strangely out of place among the much newer villas around it. Yet that was precisely what made it so intriguing. When I acquired this delicate pastel by Anton L. Koster in November 2024, those childhood memories came straight back. I bought the drawing and began looking into the story behind it.
Who was the Dutch painter Anton Koster?
Antonie Lodewijk Koster (1859–1937), a versatile Dutch artist, was evidently struck by the charm of the tea pavilion too. Koster, who studied in The Hague and was influenced by Impressionism during his travels through France, is best known for his paintings of flower bulb fields. This specialization earned him the nickname ‘Anton Tulp.’ In 1902, Koster moved to Haarlem and settled permanently in Heemstede in 1905, where he created this pastel.
The drawing depicts the stately national monument Bosch & Hoven. The bare trees suggest an autumn or early winter setting. With masterful, brush-like strokes, Koster brings the landscape to life in pastel chalk. The pale blue of the sky contrasts with the warm earth tones of the pavilion and the green hues of the background. The interplay of the trees' lines guides the viewer’s eye into the composition, while an elaborately detailed ornament in the lower right corner adds a decorative touch. But the observant viewer will notice something unusual: the tea pavilion is not in its original location.
The Bosch & Hoven Estate; A Midnight Relocation Mission
The tea pavilion did not originally stand in Aerdenhout. It belonged to the Bosch en Hoven estate in Heemstede, along the Herenweg. The octagonal pavilion was built in the eighteenth century as a retreat for the estate’s owners. With its Baroque cornice and graceful domed roof, it must have been quite a sight. It was built into the estate’s boundary wall, offering fine views across the grounds and beyond. It also became a familiar landmark along the busy road.
By the early twentieth century, Bosch en Hoven had fallen into decline. A fire destroyed the main house in 1933, and the remains were later demolished. The tea pavilion had already escaped that fate. In 1927, it was sold to a new owner. C.J. van Tienhoven, who lived at Villa ‘Klein Bentveld’, decided that the pavilion deserved a new home on his estate. When he learned that it was due to be demolished to make way for an expanded road, he went to considerable lengths to save it. The pavilion was carefully dismantled, brick by brick, and transported to Aerdenhout. The domed roof presented a particular challenge. More than four metres high and six metres across, it was simply too large and too fragile to take apart. It had to be moved in one piece, with its delicate interior stucco work kept intact throughout the journey.
The royal supplier Rijnierse construction company from Overveen was entrusted with the task of moving the roof. A wooden framework was built to secure it to a large cart. Horses then pulled the cart for four kilometres, while dozens of men steadied the enormous load as it made its way through the narrow lanes. To keep the roads clear, the entire operation took place at night. It must have been quite a sight: a procession of men, horses and a huge domed roof making its way through the darkness. Fortunately, the remarkable scene was captured in a photograph. By morning, the dome had reached its new home and was ready to be lifted back onto the pavilion.
Today, the nostalgic tea pavilion still stands in the garden of Villa ‘Klein Bentveld’ in Aerdenhout. It has survived fires, demolition plans and a remarkable overnight journey. Perhaps that is what makes Koster’s pastel so evocative. It brings back not only a building from another time, but a whole landscape that has since changed beyond recognition.
