A soldier blowing on a match, from the Musketeers series, plate 40, in Wapenhandelinghe van Roers Musquetten Ende Spiessen (The Exercise of Arms) 1575 - 1629

This is Plate 40, ‘A soldier blowing on a match’, one of a series of engravings made by Jacques de Gheyn II. It's part of his series "Wapenhandelinghe van Roers Musquetten Ende Spiessen," or "The Exercise of Arms." De Gheyn created this series during a time of intense military change in Europe. It reflects the increasing professionalization of armies. The series was intended as a training manual. Each plate meticulously details the postures and actions required to handle firearms. Yet it speaks volumes about the individuals who were becoming instruments of war. This print captures the tension and anticipation inherent in a soldier’s life, the moment before action. We see the soldier in a moment of quiet preparation. He is carefully igniting the match that will fire his musket. The image is a study in masculinity and duty, but also in the human experience of war. What might he be thinking at this moment? What does it mean to train men for combat, to turn them into extensions of weaponry? De Gheyn invites us to consider the human cost, and the psychological weight of military service.