Auto-da-fe in Valladolid, 1558 1701 - 1703

Coenraet Decker made this print of the Auto-da-fe in Valladolid using etching, sometime between 1665 and 1685 in the Netherlands. It represents the execution of supposed heretics in Spain, almost a century earlier. The composition divides society into spectators and victims. On the left, we see a procession of the condemned, accompanied by armed guards and religious officials. Wealthy spectators watch from balconies. On the right, people are being burned at the stake outside the city walls. Decker's print reflects the religious and political tensions of the Dutch Golden Age, when the Protestant Netherlands was fighting for independence from Catholic Spain. Prints like these were propaganda tools. They served to demonize Spain, to emphasize the cruelty of the Inquisition, and to strengthen the resolve of the Dutch people. Images such as this provide us with insights into the cultural history of Europe. They’re evidence of the ways that political and religious conflicts have been understood, manipulated, and transmitted.