Ooievaars 1611 - 1661

This undated print titled "Ooievaars" (Storks) was made by an anonymous artist, rendered with etching. The image depicts storks in a natural setting, one with a snake in its beak, and another with its head in the air. Prints like these circulated widely in the Netherlands, often bound in books, and were collected by middle-class and upper-class patrons of the arts. Artists drew inspiration from the natural world to create moralizing images. The stork, for example, could be associated with domesticity. This might be linked to the idea of childhood and the stork bringing babies. The presence of the snake introduces a darker tone, perhaps signaling dangers to family and innocence. Understanding the full meaning depends on understanding the social and intellectual environment in which it was made. Historians look to written sources like emblem books and natural histories, which are crucial to understanding how viewers would have interpreted the image. Art becomes a window into a world of changing ideas and social norms.