Titelblad voor de officiële feestgids voor het 25-jarige jubileum van de inhuldiging van koning Willem III te Amsterdam, 1874 1874

This is the title page for the official festival guide for the 25th anniversary of the inauguration of King Willem III in Amsterdam, printed in 1874 by the Binger Brothers. It’s a lithograph, a form of printmaking that exploded in popularity during the 19th century. The process involves drawing an image with a greasy crayon onto a flat stone or metal plate, which is then treated so that ink adheres only to the drawn areas. Lithography allowed for relatively quick and cheap reproduction of images and text, making printed materials like this accessible to a wider public. The design is simple and stately, dominated by bold typography and the royal coat of arms. But consider the sheer volume of printed matter being produced at this time, fueling an expanding consumer culture. A seemingly straightforward item like this festival guide connects to larger social issues of industrial production, labor, and the dissemination of information in the modern age. So, next time you see a printed image, think about the lithographers, machinists, distributors and publishers, and the amount of work involved in its production process!