Grafmonument van Louis de la Kethulle in de Sint-Gertrudiskerk te Bergen op Zoom 1890

This photograph shows the tomb of Louis de la Kethulle in the Sint-Gertrudiskerk in Bergen op Zoom. Though the date of the photograph and the photographer are unknown, we can consider the photograph as part of the institutional history of the church, and of Bergen op Zoom itself. The tomb would have been an imposing statement of wealth and power, a family using the church as a site to display its social status. The photograph then acts as a record of that statement. Considering that this photograph was commissioned by the Monumentenzorg – the Dutch office for the care of monuments – we might see the image as part of the cultural heritage of the Netherlands. To understand the social function of this image, one could research the Kethulle family, the history of the church, and the role of the Monumentenzorg in preserving Dutch history and art. Understanding the image relies on understanding these social and institutional contexts.