Portret van Gotthilf Samuel Steinbart 1768 - 1817

Johann Heinrich Lips created this portrait of Gotthilf Samuel Steinbart using etching, sometime around the late 18th century. In the late 1700s, portraiture served specific social functions. Lips’s etching provides a glimpse into the visual codes that reinforced social hierarchies in Europe. Steinbart's powdered wig, for example, signals his status within a certain professional class, likely the educated clergy or academia, given his clerical collar. The etching itself would have circulated amongst a network of intellectuals and admirers. Lips, being a Swiss artist working in the orbit of German intellectual circles, positions himself within the Enlightenment project. These small, reproducible images played a crucial role in disseminating ideas and solidifying reputations across Europe. Historians use archives, letters, and printed materials to reconstruct these social networks and intellectual exchanges. Understanding this context reveals how art like this wasn't just about likeness; it was about participating in a larger conversation about knowledge, status, and social standing.