Portret van Johann Georg Volckamer Possibly 1693 - 1704

Leonhard Heckenauer made this engraving, *Portret van Johann Georg Volckamer*, sometime between 1650 and 1704. The image presents Volckamer as an important scholar, emphasizing his status and the institutions he served. The visual codes are clear: his elaborate wig, ornate clothing, and the Latin inscription denote wealth, education, and power. The inscription indicates that Volckamer was a member of the Leopoldina Academy, a prestigious scientific society in the Holy Roman Empire. Seventeenth-century institutions like the Leopoldina played a crucial role in shaping scientific inquiry and legitimizing knowledge. Portraits like these served as a form of social currency, reinforcing the subject's standing within these influential circles. To understand this portrait fully, historians consult institutional records, biographies, and period texts. Only then can we appreciate the complex relationship between individuals, institutions, and the making of knowledge in the 17th century.