Bewegte See, ein zweimastiges Schiff segelt nach rechts an einem Dreimaster vorbei, der die Segel eingerefft hat 

Leendert de Koningh made this brown ink drawing of ships on a rough sea sometime in the first half of the 19th century. It portrays two large sailing vessels pitching and rolling in the waves as a smaller ship heads toward the horizon. Shipping scenes such as this one were very popular in the Netherlands at this time, and they speak to the importance of maritime trade to the Dutch economy and national identity. The Dutch Golden Age of the 17th century had been built on sea power, and although that era of global dominance had passed, the Dutch merchant fleet remained one of the largest in the world. The iconography of ships in art tapped into the symbolic association of ships with exploration, commerce, and military might. The billowing clouds and choppy water may allude to the risks and challenges inherent in seafaring life. The historian might look at the records of Dutch shipbuilding, or the logs of Dutch merchant ships, to better understand this image. We see that art doesn’t just reflect life, it actively engages with the culture of its time.