Portret van de Amsterdamse burgemeester Jan Messchert van Vollenhoven 1858 - 1881

Edouard Taurel made this portrait of Jan Messchert van Vollenhoven, the mayor of Amsterdam, using lithography. A lithograph is a print made from a stone or metal plate with a completely smooth surface. In the Netherlands, during this period, lithography emerged as a tool for documenting public figures and disseminating their images widely. Looking closely, we can see the mayor’s chain of office. Van Vollenhoven’s confident pose also communicates authority. But lithographs also had a wider cultural role. They were part of a new print culture that developed with industrialization. Unlike older forms of printmaking such as etching, lithography did not require specialist skills and equipment and so opened up opportunities for a wider range of artists. The Rijksmuseum’s collection holds many lithographs, offering a rich resource for understanding the social and political life of the 19th century. By studying these images, we can learn more about the individuals who shaped Dutch society.