Spotprent op de aanleg van spoorwegen, 1860 1860

This caricature on the construction of railways was made around 1860 by Johan Michaël Schmidt Crans. During this time, the Netherlands was undergoing rapid industrialization, and the expansion of the railway system was a significant part of this transformation. In the print, we see lion-headed figures, alluding to the Dutch national symbol, engaged in a knitting lesson led by a maternal lion figure. Knitting here stands in for the intricate and laborious process of railway construction. The image suggests a tension between progress and tradition, nationhood and labor. The choice of lions is particularly pointed; while they symbolize national pride and strength, they are depicted here in a somewhat docile, even infantilized, state, learning to knit. This may reflect contemporary anxieties about the changing nature of Dutch identity in the face of industrial progress. The artist subtly critiques the social and economic impact of modernization on Dutch society.