Lezende jongen voor een boekenkraam 1827 - 1883

"Lezende jongen voor een boekenkraam" (Reading Boy in front of a Bookstall), a black and white wood engraving by Dutch artist Rombertus Julianus van Arum, depicts a bustling scene of a bookstall in the 19th century. The engraving, now in the Rijksmuseum, captures a young boy engrossed in a book while a vendor points out another, showcasing the simple pleasures of reading in a time before widespread literacy. The work's detailed rendering of the bookstall, the surrounding figures, and the cityscape in the background highlights van Arum's mastery of this technique.