Intocht van kardinaal-infant Ferdinand, landvoogd van de Spaanse Nederlanden 1634

This silver medal by Adriaan Waterloos commemorates Cardinal-Infante Ferdinand's arrival as Governor of the Spanish Netherlands. The medal encapsulates the political and religious tensions of the 17th century. Ferdinand, a Catholic Cardinal and Spanish royal, represented the Habsburg’s authority over a region with growing Protestant sentiments. The imagery presents Ferdinand in profile, alluding to classical authority, while the reverse likely depicts his arrival by sea, perhaps referencing divine right and power of the Catholic Monarch. Medals such as this were often commissioned by rulers or institutions to circulate a particular image of power. As historians, we must examine these objects in relation to the social and political context of their creation. By consulting period documents, letters, and other visual sources, we gain a fuller understanding of the messages being conveyed. This medal is a reminder that art is always a product of the institutions and social conditions that bring it into being.