Portret van Herodes Possibly 1610 - 1654

Curator: Welcome to the Rijksmuseum. Today, we’re looking at “Portret van Herodes,” or "Portrait of Herod," an engraving created sometime between 1610 and 1654 by an anonymous artist. What strikes you about this image? Editor: The most immediate thing is how…severe it is. Herod has this stern look, almost a frown, and the rigid armor makes him appear unapproachable. Also, being an engraving, it uses only black lines to render a very lifelike portrait of a historical figure. I'm curious about the hat: is that common? What kind of story does this image tell, do you think? Curator: Good question! That hat tells us this image isn't aiming for perfect historical accuracy. It’s a more theatrical, perhaps romanticized, portrayal. It is attempting to illustrate not just the figure, but also the legend that grew around him. Look at how the artist used dense lines to create dramatic shading, especially around his face. It enhances his menacing persona. Editor: So it's less about documenting what Herod *actually* looked like and more about…interpreting his character? The legend of a tyrant is visually depicted by having stern features, armor that looks like a shell, and that dark shading on the face. It really highlights the ruthlessness of his historical character. Curator: Precisely! Engravings like this one often served as illustrations for historical texts, shaping public perception through visual rhetoric. He looks every bit the king people loved to hate, doesn’t he? A fascinating window into how history is both recorded and *created*. Editor: I never thought about an image shaping someone’s legacy so directly. This portrait doesn’t just show us Herod, it *tells* us who he was, according to someone else, with the rendering reinforcing a perspective on his historic legacy. Thanks, I am forever thinking differently about historic images!