Document Possibly 1833 - 1838

This is a bill made in 1818, in Nijmegen, likely written with quill and ink on paper. It's addressed to a Mr. C.T. Holterman, a lodger at the Rotterdam Inn. What interests me most about this seemingly mundane document is its insight into the social and economic life of the time. The Rijksmuseum’s rich archives allow us to place this bill within a broader historical context. We can examine trade routes, patterns of consumption, and the emerging culture of travel and lodging in the Netherlands. Who was Mr. Holterman? What brought him to Nijmegen? Was he a merchant, a government official, or simply a tourist? By studying sources like city directories, travel guides, and business records, we can begin to reconstruct the world that this small piece of paper once inhabited. It serves as a reminder that even the most ordinary objects can offer valuable clues about the past.