Geboortebewijs van George Hendrik Breitner 1857

This is the birth certificate of George Hendrik Breitner, made in Rotterdam in 1857. It is an unremarkable document, simply paper with pre-printed lines and type, filled in by handwriting. Yet the paper itself is significant. Mass production of paper for everyday bureaucratic uses was relatively new. The industrial revolution enabled the inexpensive production of paper from wood pulp, creating standardized forms. This was a huge step forward for governments to track citizens, record births and deaths, and manage an increasingly complex society. The lines, typeface and handwriting are all crucial to the document’s function. Considered in this way, even the most commonplace, seemingly artless objects can tell us stories about labor, materials, and industrialization. By looking closely, we can expand our understanding of the social forces that shape our world.