Gezicht op het Land van Beveren 1735

Reynier Blokhuysen created this print, "Gezicht op het Land van Beveren," a bird’s-eye view of the Beveren region, sometime between 1683 and 1744. During the early modern period, the Dutch Republic saw a flourishing of cartography, fueled by its expanding trade routes and colonial ambitions. Prints like this one were more than geographical records, they were assertions of power and control. Note the two coats of arms. The symbols of noble families visually stake their claims to land and authority. The detailed depiction of the landscape reduces it to a commodity. Consider the labor involved in rendering the landscape in such detail, and for whom such a view was intended. What narratives are privileged and whose perspectives are absent? While celebrating the prosperity and order of the region, this image quietly upholds a system of social hierarchy and land ownership.