Jona wordt overboord gegooid in de mond van de walvis 1530 - 1533

This small, unsigned woodcut depicts the Old Testament story of Jonah being thrown overboard and swallowed by a whale. It probably originates from the Netherlands sometime in the 16th or 17th century. At this time, the Dutch Republic was a major maritime power, and images of ships and sea voyages were common. Here, we see a vessel tossed about in a rather choppy sea; two men manhandle a third unfortunate soul who is about to be devoured by the jaws of a rather friendly looking whale. The woodcut probably served as an illustration to a Bible, or perhaps a broadsheet. Woodcuts were the principle means of disseminating images to a wide audience, especially among the poorer levels of society. We can imagine it being displayed in homes, or public spaces such as taverns. Such images were not merely illustrative; they served to spread religious and moral messages. To find out more about the social and cultural context of such images, historians consult a wide range of sources from religious texts, to social histories, to studies of popular print culture.