Ontvangstbewijs aan Petrus Johannes Arendzen Possibly 1886

Curator: Look at this lovely little thing. It's called "Ontvangstbewijs aan Petrus Johannes Arendzen," attributed to Frans Buffa en Zonen, possibly from 1886. It's essentially an ink drawing on paper, housed here at the Rijksmuseum. What do you think? Editor: It feels... fragile, like a whisper from another century. The cursive script dances across the paper. The grey of the ink on the off-white of the paper, too, is striking. Is that a stamp down there? Curator: Precisely! It seems to be a receipt, "Ontvangstbewijs" translates roughly to "proof of receipt." Look closely, you'll see the inscription "ontvangen van de Edelgele Heer Frans Buffa & Zonen" - received from the honorable gentlemen Frans Buffa and Sons, for the sum of two hundred guilders. Editor: So, this isn't just any sketch; it's a piece of economic history. It documents a transaction. Who were Frans Buffa and Sons? And who was Petrus Johannes Arendzen? Curator: Frans Buffa en Zonen were well known art dealers, and this slip was for the payment made by Petrus Johannes Arendzen. He most likely bought an artwork from them! You can see his signature there below the embossed stamp. These types of business practices tell you everything about art's marketability back then. Editor: Fascinating! So the document itself has now become a work of art. I wonder what the original receipt-holder would think of their everyday financial record hanging on a museum wall. It also makes you question what everyday items, destined to be in a landfill, would tell someone two centuries from now. Curator: I’m with you on that sentiment! Its modest beauty lies not in grand pronouncements, but in these little glimpses of lives lived. It reminds me how art history isn't just about paintings of kings or dramatic battles; it's also about the mundane, everyday exchange that allows creativity to flourish. Editor: Exactly. From tax returns, we shall assemble the muses. Thank you for unveiling that unassuming but intriguing piece of our past! Curator: And thank you, for reminding us that sometimes, the greatest stories are found not in what's prominently displayed, but in what's tucked away, waiting to be rediscovered.