Prinses van Oranje aangehouden te Goejanverwellesluis 1791

This print, made by Gottfried Arnold Lehman, shows the Princess of Orange detained at Goejanverwellesluis. It is an etching, a process where lines are incised into a metal plate with acid, then inked and printed. Look closely, and you'll notice that the lines are not uniform; some are deeper and thicker, others are fine and delicate. Lehman would have controlled this by varying the strength of the acid, and the amount of time the plate was immersed. It is a skilled and labor-intensive process to produce such an image. The choice of etching, rather than painting or sculpture, is itself significant. Prints like this one were relatively inexpensive and could be widely distributed, making them an ideal medium for political commentary during a period of social upheaval. The very act of production, in multiples, mirrors the broader dynamics of the era. It’s a reminder that even seemingly straightforward images can be deeply embedded in the material realities of their time.