Jongeman met een platte kraag 1665 - 1738

Carel de Moor the Younger made this small etching of a young man with a flat collar in the Netherlands. In the Dutch Golden Age, portraiture wasn't just about appearances; it was a carefully constructed statement of social standing. De Moor’s rendering of the sitter’s delicate features and flowing locks creates an image of elegance and refinement, qualities highly valued by the era’s elite. But portraits also played a crucial role in shaping social identities. They were commissioned to project not just personal likeness, but also to signal one’s place within the complex social hierarchy of the time. This image creates meaning through visual codes, cultural references, and historical associations. Art historians use costume manuals, social histories, and institutional records to help understand how images like this were created, used, and understood in their time.