Anton Wachter cycle

The life of Wachter is captured in eight semi-autobiographical novels considered central to Vestdijk's oeuvre.

The first four volumes are set in the town of Lahringen, meaning Harlingen, where Vestdijk was born and raised.

The first novel in the cycle's chronology, Sint Sebastiaan, derived its name from a painting of the saint by Alonso Cano Vestdijk admired in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam.

From an early age Vestdijk spent vacations in Amsterdam, and returned there frequently, during his studies in Utrecht and after he moved to Doorn, also to enjoy "the pool of sinful and forbidden things".

[1] A statue of Anton Wachter by Suze Boschma-Berkhout, in Harlingen's Voorstraat, was unveiled in 1973.