Antwerp Cathedral (Prospectvs Tvrris Ecclesiæ Cathedralis) 1649

Wenceslaus Hollar made this etching of the Antwerp Cathedral, a towering achievement of Gothic architecture, at an unknown date. Hollar, who was born in Prague, spent much of his career in different European centers, documenting the architecture of his time with almost anthropological precision. This print offers us a glimpse into 17th-century Antwerp, a bustling port city and a center of trade and religious conflict. Hollar’s detailed rendering invites reflection on the relationship between the sacred and the secular. The cathedral, with its soaring spire, dominates the urban landscape, but Hollar also carefully depicts the merchants, the carriages, and the everyday life unfolding at its base. As we consider Hollar’s print, let’s think about who had access to this image and what stories it told about the city, its wealth, and its relationship to a higher power. It invites us to reflect on the tensions between spiritual aspiration and earthly existence.