De doedelzak geeft geen geluid, dan als hij vol is 1590 - 1594

Hendrick Goltzius created this engraving, "De doedelzak geeft geen geluid, dan als hij vol is," which translates to “The bagpipe only sounds when it is full,” sometime before his death in 1617. The image presents an allegory of the senses, but it also speaks to social conditions in the Netherlands at the turn of the 17th century. Goltzius was a leading figure in the Dutch Republic, a society that was rapidly urbanizing, developing a complex class structure, and defining its national identity. The print depicts a group of peasants drinking and making music, a scene that can be interpreted as both a celebration of Dutch folk culture and a critique of its perceived excesses. The bagpipe, as the central symbol, could be a metaphor for the need to be “full” in order to produce something of value. As historians, we might consult popular literature of the time, examining proverbs, plays, and poems, in order to gain further insights into the meaning of this image and its place within the broader cultural landscape of the Dutch Republic.