Tuin van de liefde 1661

Nicolaes de Bruyn made this print, "Tuin van de liefde" or "Garden of Love," using engraving techniques sometime in the late 16th or early 17th century. It encapsulates many of the social rituals of love and courtship. Produced in the Netherlands, this image reflects the era's fascination with gardens as spaces of leisure and social interaction. You see couples strolling, sitting, and engaging in intimate conversations. This idealized vision of love, however, was carefully managed by the institutions of marriage and family. These figures, dressed in the height of fashion, were members of the elite classes, and the print would have circulated among them. By studying fashion, social customs, and the symbolic language of love, we can better understand the social values and expectations of the time. Images like these offer a glimpse into the complex interplay between personal desire and social norms.