Briefkaart aan Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk before 1924

Curator: We're looking at a fascinating piece of ephemera by Marinus van der Maarel. It's a postcard addressed to Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk, and we believe it dates to before 1924. Editor: The visual impression is dominated by handwriting, multiple postal marks. It feels almost… archaeological, unearthed from someone's past. Curator: Precisely. It's ink on paper. If we examine it, you can see several circular postmarks in a vibrant blue, stark against the paper. One is dated September 13, 1912, and another the 24th. It provides clues to the culture and technologies in place at the time it was circulated. Editor: There's an intimacy about it, though, even as an administrative artifact. It feels quite detached to look at because one cannot help but imagine a whole existence surrounding a quick handwritten letter. We should think about who had the right to write, the cultural dimensions of being addressed and acknowledged. This simple object asks a lot of important questions about cultural identity and society. Curator: Absolutely. What did this small message between people at the time mean socially, or institutionally? Van der Maarel would have felt a kind of obligation, perhaps. These messages served not only personal functions but sustained a sense of community and social connection within certain societal hierarchies and urban systems. Editor: And it reminds us how easily these types of traces disappear. This card is a time capsule that allows us a certain reflection about that type of material culture that remains long after the people. Curator: Yes, a small portal into their world. I wonder if Pieter Haverkorn van Rijsewijk knew his little piece of post would fascinate generations later? Editor: What stands out for me is that despite being a tiny fragment, this Briefkaart really embodies many different social registers. It urges me to remember that history and social power is made out of an everyday accumulation of little fragments like this one.