Head of a Cat 1646

Wenceslaus Hollar created this etching of a cat's head, printed on paper, sometime in the 17th century. The print's appeal lies in the combination of its naturalistic style with its didactic message. The inscriptions in Czech and German suggest a proverb about good cats not liking theft. During the 17th century in Central Europe, the popular interest in proverbs grew alongside the rise of print culture, which enabled wider access to images. The very fact that cats are the subject of these proverbs gives us insight into domestic life at the time. The etching, now in the Rijksmuseum, exemplifies the intersection of art and social commentary during Hollar’s era. Art historians draw upon a range of period resources like folklore collections, books of proverbs, and even domestic inventories to better understand these works. Only through this broad and interdisciplinary method can the social meanings of the image become clear.