Illustration til "Storkene" i H.C. Andersen, "Eventyr og Historier", Bind 1 1870 - 1873

This is H.P. Hansen’s Illustration for Hans Christian Andersen’s tale “The Storks,” made in Denmark sometime in the 19th Century using an engraving technique. Illustrations like this one played a key role in shaping the stories we tell ourselves. By visualizing the stork's act of plucking children from a pond, Hansen’s illustration influences how we imagine this folk tale. The image participates in a broader cultural discourse about childhood and parenthood, where storks traditionally deliver babies to families. This image also shows us something about how art was consumed in 19th-century Denmark. It would have been part of a bound book, and the mass distribution of printed material helped create a shared culture. Studying these illustrations, alongside the stories they accompany and the history of printing and publishing, allows us to understand the social and cultural values that these images reflect and reinforce.