Titelpagina voor: Jan Messchert van Vollenhoven, 'Proeven van eener vrije navolging ((...)) van Publius Ovidius Naso', 1809 1809

Reinier Vinkeles made this title page in 1809 using etching and engraving techniques. The print advertises Jan Messchert van Vollenhoven’s translations of Ovid, the Roman poet. The image reminds us of the institutional power of the classics in the Dutch Republic. By the 19th century, there was a widely-held belief that familiarity with the art and literature of ancient Greece and Rome was essential for a truly cultured person. The Dutch, like other Europeans, looked to antiquity for models of civic virtue and artistic excellence. We see this in the idealized portrait of Ovid, rendered as a classical bust. But we also see it in the other symbols that surround the portrait: the writing implements on the left and the lyre on the right. Historians can look to library records, school curricula, and other archival sources to understand how deeply the classics were embedded in Dutch society. The continued appeal of Ovid demonstrates the enduring power of the classical tradition.