Spotprent op de pogingen van de conservatieven het ministerie omver te trekken, 1873 1873

This print by Johan Michaël Schmidt Crans was made in the Netherlands in 1873 and it depicts the conservative attempts to overthrow the ministry. It is made with etching on paper. The image is a political cartoon which uses symbols to make its argument. Horses labeled with the names of conservative publications are shown pulling a tree labeled ‘Minister’. It looks like they are trying to uproot it, but the tree is firmly grounded. The image’s meaning is dependent on the viewer’s knowledge of the political landscape of the time. What were the policies of the Ministry? What did the conservative publications advocate? Only by researching these questions can we fully understand the social context that shaped the artist's message. This print reminds us that artworks are very often interventions in specific political debates. Historical research is essential to reconstruct and understand what those debates were.