Illustration til "Den lille Idas Blomster" i H.C. Andersen, "Eventyr og Historier", Bind 1 1870 - 1873

H.P. Hansen created this illustration for Hans Christian Andersen’s fairy tale, “Little Ida’s Flowers.” This image, like many illustrations of its time, offers a glimpse into 19th-century childhood, reflecting societal expectations around gender roles and play. We see two boys with what appears to be a crossbow and spade standing over a young girl kneeling at what might be a grave for flowers, a scene taken directly from the story. What is striking, though perhaps not surprising, is how the children are occupied: The boys carry what could be interpreted as weapons, while the girl is tending to the dead. Hansen's illustration is not merely a visual representation of Andersen's tale, but a cultural artifact, one that subtly reinforces the period’s norms about children and their expected behaviors. The image may appear to be a simple depiction of childhood, but it subtly communicates the complex intersections of gender and social expectations in the nineteenth century.