Bootswerft met twee mannen aan het werk c. 1750 - 1800

G. van Citters made this small print of a boatyard with two men at work, using etching techniques. The image is filled with the kind of details that allow us to glimpse into the socio-economic fabric of its time, presumably somewhere in the Netherlands. The presence of a boatyard suggests a close relationship with water, which was crucial for transport, trade, and defense. This print reflects the economic importance of shipbuilding in a maritime society. By depicting the labor involved in boat construction, the artist draws attention to the skilled craftsmen who contributed to the prosperity of the region. These details can be linked to archival sources such as trade records and guild documents. Such images, while seemingly simple, carry a wealth of information about the cultural values and economic activities of their time. As historians, our job is to unpack these layers of meaning, using prints like these as visual documents that testify to the lived experiences of past societies.