Portret van Gerlach Scheltinga c. 1850

Leendert Springer made this portrait of Gerlach Scheltinga, likely sometime in the first half of the 19th century. The image presents us with the bust of a bewigged gentleman. The flowing wig and formal attire denote a man of status and learning, likely within legal or academic circles. Made in the Netherlands, this portrait reflects a society where class and profession were visually codified through dress. The wig, a relic of 18th-century fashion, would have been increasingly anachronistic at this time. Portraits like these were tools for constructing and reinforcing social hierarchies. They communicated power and respectability, but it is up to us, as historians, to look beyond the surface. By examining the social and institutional contexts in which such images were produced and consumed, through sources like fashion history, legal archives, and genealogical records, we can begin to understand the complex interplay between art and society.