Quodlibet with Goldfinch c. late 18th century

Christian Gottlob Winterschmidt made this Quodlibet with Goldfinch, a print with pen and watercolor, at the turn of the 19th century. The Quodlibet, meaning "what you please," was a popular type of trompe l'oeil print, or “fool the eye” which arranged seemingly random objects on a flat plane to mimic the look of actual objects pinned to a board. This example gives us insight into the world of a literate Central European citizen. We can see fragments of almanacs and printed books, perhaps suggestive of widespread access to knowledge and information. The playing card might represent leisure, while the Goldfinch alludes to beauty or perhaps freedom. In a society undergoing the shift from feudalism to early capitalism, the Quodlibet serves as a mirror, reflecting not just the objects of daily life, but also the burgeoning culture of print and the democratization of knowledge. As historians, our task is to piece together these fragments, much like the artist has done, to understand the cultural narratives they construct. Through careful study of these remnants, we gain a deeper appreciation for the social textures of the time.