Interieur van een petroleum tinfabriek (boven) en van een petroleumaftapplaats (onder) op Sumatra before 1898

Carl J. Kleingrothe created this print, "Interior of a Petroleum Tin Factory and a Petroleum Bottling Plant in Sumatra," offering us a glimpse into the industrial landscape of early 20th-century colonial Indonesia. The images capture labor-intensive scenes of production. Men are diligently working in the tin factory above, while below, others are engaged in the repetitive task of filling and stacking petroleum containers. Kleingrothe, a Dutch artist, presents a vision of industry that often obscures the human cost. These images speak to the complex relationship between industrial progress and colonial exploitation. Sumatra, then part of the Dutch East Indies, was a source of immense wealth extracted through natural resources and labor. This print invites us to reflect on how economic advancement is intertwined with the lives and experiences of those whose work fueled it. Consider the hands that tirelessly worked in these factories, their stories, and how they navigated the intersections of race, class, and colonial power.