Two ships are shown in difficulty in a heavy sea with storm clouds blowing away to the right above a rocky coast. The composition is dominated by a two-decker in port-bow view in the left foreground, being tossed close to the rocks by large waves. A ragged red ensign is still flying and although the mainmast is standing, the topmast has been broken off and there is no sign of the topsail.

The positioning of the figures on the steeply pitched deck is a sophisticated interpretation of a technique previously used by Vroom and Porcellis. The figures are clearly visible, as if shown from an aerial perspective, and many of them look towards the viewer. The waves are shown crashing over the deck on the starboard bow and posing an increased danger for the men struggling to save their ship. In the right background another English ship, in port-quarter view, has been driven broadside onto the projecting rocks and has lost her foremast. A low coastline is visible beyond.

The artist may have incorporated this wreck to indicate the potential plight for the sailors on the main ship. The painting is believed to be one of the first pictures the artist painted in England and is thought to be the right-hand one of a pair, with perhaps the other picture showing the same ships in a calm sea. It is uncertain whether the painting indicates a specific incident or is an imaginary interpretation of a storm.

The artist was the younger son of Willem van de Velde the Elder. Born in Leiden, he studied under Simon de Vlieger in Weesp and in 1652 moved back to Amsterdam. He worked in his father's studio and developed the skill of carefully drawing ships in tranquil settings. He changed his subject matter, however, when he came with his father to England in 1672-73, by a greater concentration on royal yachts, men-of-war and storm scenes. From this time painting sea battles for Charles II and his brother (and Lord High Admiral) James, Duke of York, and other patrons, became a priority. Unlike his father's works, however, they were not usually eyewitness accounts. After his father's death in 1693 his continuing role as an official marine painter obliged him to be more frequently present at significant maritime events. The painting is signed on a bale, lower right, 'In London 1672/ W.V.Velde'.