Zinzendorf legt de eerste steen voor de gemeenschap Herrnhut 1800

This is Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki’s engraving, “Zinzendorf legt de eerste steen voor de gemeenschap Herrnhut”. The print depicts Count Nicolaus Ludwig Zinzendorf laying the foundation stone for Herrnhut, a community in Saxony, Germany, that would become the center of the Moravian Church in 1722. The Moravians were Protestant refugees who had faced religious persecution in Bohemia and Moravia. Zinzendorf, a German religious and social reformer, allowed them to settle on his estate. What's fascinating here is how Chodowiecki captures the act of building a community rooted in religious freedom and social equality. Envision the scene: a group of people, seeking refuge from persecution, coming together to build not just a place, but a shared identity. How might this have felt for those who had previously been excluded or marginalized? This image then, becomes a testament to the power of community and the human spirit's resilience in the face of adversity.