Portret van Johann Moritz Triller 1700s

Johann Christoph Boecklin created this portrait of Johann Moritz Triller using etching. As a print, this image would have been relatively inexpensive, offering widespread access to Triller's likeness. This portrait participates in the cultural codes of seventeenth-century European aristocracy. Look at the elaborate wig and lace cravat, visual markers of status and wealth. The portrait is surrounded by Latin inscriptions, a language of the educated elite, and includes a coat of arms, emphasizing Triller’s lineage. This etching was likely commissioned to promote Triller’s status in a society that valued lineage and learning. It tells us a lot about the values of the sitter and the institutions in which he operated. To understand this image better, we might research the symbols in Triller’s coat of arms, study the fashion trends of the period, and read texts written by or about Triller. Art history is detective work, piecing together clues to understand an artwork’s place in the world.