Herberg met feestende gasten before 1626

Bartholomeus Willemsz. Dolendo created this etching, "Herberg met feestende gasten," capturing a scene brimming with revelry and moral commentary. The inn, bustling with feasting patrons, serves as a focal point, drawing our attention to the indulgence and excess within. The windmill in the background, often a symbol of prosperity and industry, takes on a dualistic role, juxtaposed against the drunken behaviour in the foreground, reminiscent of those found in the medieval Dance of Death depictions. Similarly, the figures collapsed in drunken stupor echo motifs found in earlier allegorical prints warning against vices like gluttony and sloth, where the body becomes a battleground for moral and psychological forces. Such imagery taps into a deep-seated, collective fear of moral decay, reflecting anxieties about the transience of pleasure and the ever-present threat of chaos lurking beneath the surface of everyday life. These symbols resurface throughout history, adapted to each era's specific concerns, yet retaining their core message.