Stedenmaagd van Amsterdam in de haven 1680 - 1731

This print, ‘Stedenmaagd van Amsterdam in de haven’, was made by Jan Goeree, who lived between 1670 and 1731. It is an etching, meaning that the image we see was created by using acid to bite lines into a metal plate. In this case, the crispness of the lines is essential to the print’s meaning. It's an allegorical scene of Amsterdam as a virgin, or maiden. She sits in a harbor, presiding over a scene of industry and commerce. The city’s wealth is represented by the textiles on display, including tapestries. These would have been luxury goods, imported through the very harbor depicted in the background. The textiles also allude to the intense labor of production that drove the Dutch economy. And it is labor of a very specific kind: highly skilled, refined, and contributing to the visual splendor of the city. The print, with its own crisp lines and graphic exactitude, participates in this culture of precision and value. It reminds us that every object is the result of a complex social and economic history, all made visible through careful attention to the details of its making.