Boerderijen aan een ommuurde binnenplaats 1559 - 1561

Johannes or Lucas van Doetechum made this print of farmhouses around an enclosed courtyard using etching techniques. Prints like this were popular in the Netherlands and elsewhere from the mid-16th century onward because they spoke to a growing sense of national and regional identity. The details of rural architecture, the gabled roofs, and thatched walls, were very specific to this area. The farmhouses are humble, but not impoverished. These are productive, profitable farms. Prints were sold in cities like Antwerp in the Netherlands and disseminated a shared visual culture. By producing and selling images of the countryside, artists and publishers like Doetechum and Hieronymus Cock affirmed the social value of the rural economy. The look of the Dutch countryside became a source of pride and self-definition. To understand this image better, we can explore the cultural and economic history of the Netherlands during this period of emerging capitalism, looking at maps, trade statistics, travel accounts, and other documents that tell the story of this place.