Allegorie op de overwinningen op de Turken, 1685 1685

Curator: Philibert Bouttats created this engraving in 1685, titled "Allegorie op de overwinningen op de Turken," or "Allegory of the victories over the Turks." It’s currently held here at the Rijksmuseum. Editor: My first thought is the immense amount of detail. The density of the lines, the stippling, the sheer labor involved... It's all quite remarkable. But the mood...it feels quite chaotic and perhaps even brutal. Curator: That feeling stems from its function as propaganda. This piece celebrated Dutch military triumphs against the Ottoman Empire. Its imagery attempts to cement that political reality in the public imagination, so an appeal to strength and decisive victory makes sense. Editor: Right, I'm looking at the figure of Victoria, I assume. It's not a glorious idealized rendering as much as a somewhat... earthy and powerful presence. And the materials themselves communicate something, the hard lines and reproducibility afforded by engraving—this was meant for wide dissemination. Curator: Precisely! And consider the allegorical structure: a central victorious figure flanked by cityscapes of battle. Those carefully selected visual elements construct a narrative of conquest for its contemporary viewers, emphasizing the scope of Dutch influence and power in that period. Editor: And beneath the idealized figure, a defeated Ottoman Turk lies vanquished with fruits spilled around him. There is this interesting tension between high art allegorical elements and what seems to be a clear socio-political and class statement using accessible print technology. Who was this really supposed to appeal to? Curator: A broad spectrum of society. Prints were relatively affordable and offered a way to broadcast these state sanctioned representations of political events and desired nationalist sentiment widely, not just amongst the elites, creating that very “us versus them” binary you’re noting. Editor: Seeing the labor and the specific medium now contextualized, it’s less just chaotic and brutal to me but intentional and brutally efficient, like any weapon forged of metal. Curator: Absolutely, seeing how the medium's materiality aligns with the messaging, really changes how one experiences the piece. Editor: It does for me. Thank you.