Tekstblad behorend bij de prent naar het schilderij van de heilige Barbara door Jan van Eyck Possibly 1769

Curator: This piece from the Rijksmuseum is an engraving titled "Tekstblad behorend bij de prent naar het schilderij van de heilige Barbara door Jan van Eyck," or roughly translated, "Text page belonging to the print after the painting of Saint Barbara by Jan van Eyck." It was likely created around 1769 by Johannes (I) Enschedé. Editor: Immediately, I'm struck by its aged elegance—that off-white paper, the density of the baroque script. It has such a formal, almost intimidating, presence. Curator: Indeed, the typography itself is key here. Notice the classical type and old engraving style, the layout, which commands respect and implies significant historical context. As the title suggests, the work exists as a textual companion, probably to an etching referencing Jan van Eyck's "Saint Barbara." Editor: So, we are looking at words about an image that doesn't accompany them directly, describing another older piece of art? It's layers upon layers of interpretation! But how does this text function? Is it analysis, praise, historical record...? Curator: Possibly all of the above. In its materiality as a print, its baroque style, and in how its formal construction points to deeper connections—linking Enschedé's time back to Van Eyck’s through an act of description and transcription. Note the carefully rendered initial capital letter. It's a mini-engraving. Editor: That elaborate initial "O" is compelling—within it, a landscape like a window to another time. So, in its own way, it is a devotional object as well. As in praying on printed, not painted images. Curator: A reasonable reading, I think. It illustrates that even ostensibly informational pieces like this have aesthetic intentions and emotional power beyond their mere descriptive functions. It becomes an homage and artwork of its own accord, through these very subtle semiotic manipulations. Editor: A testament to how even text, carefully presented, can transport you and evoke just as much, or maybe even more, imagination as a painting. What a reminder of the potency inherent in type!