Het daaglyks werk der dienstmeisjes 1791 - 1812

This print, "Het daaglyks werk der dienstmeisjes", or "The Daily Work of the Maids," was made in Rotterdam by Jacobus Thompson. It’s an intriguing visual document of the lives of working-class women in the Netherlands. These small scenes offer us a glimpse into the labor, and perhaps the social standing, of maids. This would have been a period of growing urban centers and shifting class structures. Consider how institutions of printing and publishing might be engaging with ideas of class, labor, and social mobility. What messages about the social hierarchy are being communicated here? Are these images designed to uplift or demean the maids? As historians, we might use sources such as census data, household accounts, and even literature of the time to piece together a more comprehensive picture of the world these images represent. By understanding the cultural and economic context, we can begin to interpret the social commentary embedded within the artwork.