Portret van Maurits, prins van Oranje 17th century

This is an engraved portrait of Maurits, Prince of Orange, made by an anonymous artist and now held at the Rijksmuseum. The portrait, with its surrounding emblems of war and princely status, gives us some insight into the politics of imagery in the Netherlands at this time. This portrait belongs to a tradition of state portraiture common across Europe from the 16th century. But the rise of the Dutch Republic was something of a novelty, and so it’s interesting to see how older visual codes are reworked for a new kind of political entity. Maurits was the Stadtholder, an official of the Republic, but this image wants to make him look every bit the Prince. To understand this image better, we might ask, what exactly was the relationship between the Stadtholders and the other institutions of the Dutch Republic? Research into pamphlets, news sheets, and other images can help us understand the cultural and political role of art in the Netherlands.