Indepth Arts News:
"Images of History: The historical atlases of Frederik Muller (Rijksmuseum Amsterdam)
, Simon van Gijn (Dordrechts Museum), Abraham van Stolk (Historisch Museum, Rotterdam)
"
2000-07-08 until 2000-10-15
Rijksmuseum
Amsterdam, ,
NL
Three seperate exhibitions devoted to historical atlases
are to be held from July 8 to October 15, 2000. An
historical atlas consists of a collection of prints,
drawings and photographs pertaining to the history of
an area or a city. Here the focus is on the Netherlands
and its overseas territories. Down through the years,
many events have been depicted by well-known artists,
not only momentous occasions but also happenings
which we would regard as unimportant. Some did so at
the time of the event, others later. Engravers,
draughtsmen and photographers all made their own
contribution. The Netherlands had three such historical
atlases: one in Amsterdam (the work of the bookseller
Frederik Muller), one in Rotterdam (the collection of the
lumber merchant Abraham van Stolk), and one in
Dordrecht (compiled by the lawyer Simon van Gijn).
Not only the struggle against the Spanish, the naval
wars with the English, the country's colonial past, and its
domination by the French were recorded, but also the
glorious deeds of William III, the capture of the treasure
fleet by Piet Heyn, and the miraculous escape of Hugo
Grotius are depicted with appropriate gravity or with a
touch of humour. Less portentous happenings, such as
a skating race for women held in Leeuwarden around
1805 and the World Exhibition in Amsterdam in 1883
are also represented. At all the venues, a colourful
caravan of historical players in leading and supporting
roles pass before the visitor. Three informative and
entertaining exhibitions for young and old, highlighting
the nation's glorious triumphs, but also the
lesser-known events of the past.
The historical atlas of Frederik Muller
Frederik Muller
Frederik Muller (1817-1881), the most important Dutch
bookseller of the nineteenth century, grew up with
books. He helped out in 'Bibliopolium', the store which
his uncle Johannes Müller founded on Amsterdam's
Kalverstraat, sorting and cataloguing books, prints and
drawings. In 1840 Muller left to join the antiquarian
bookshop of Jac. Radink, with whom he organised his
first auctions. Several years later he went into business
for himself. The original premises became too smaal,
and a number of times he was forced to move to
another address, ending up in a large canal house on
the Herengracht. After the death of Muller in 1881, the
firm, which by then had moved to the Doelenstraat, was
increasingly devoted to art; it gained international fame
as an auction house, until its liquidation in 1963.
The atlas
Frederik Muller's historical atlas is arranged
chronologically and consists of over 25,000 sheets. It
was compiled largely during the 50s, 60s and 70s of the
nineteenth century, when a number of important
collections came onto the market. The period it
encompasses ranges from the earliest history of the
Netherlands up until 1881, the year of Muller's death. He
described nearly all the historical prints pertaining to the
Netherlands, and published them in a four-volume
catalogue. The latter appeared between 1863 and 1882,
and is still regarded as a standard work. In compiling
this book, Muller relied not only on his own collection but
also on those of others, including Van Stolk and Van
Gijn. In 1881 the Print Room of the Rijksmuseum
purchased Muller's collection of prints and drawings
devoted to the history of the Netherlands.
Exhibition in the Rijksmuseum
The exhibition to be held in the Rijksmuseum will
feature a selection of the prints, drawings and
photographs catalogued by Muller. The works will be
presented thematically rather than chronologically.
These drawings and prints depict lotteries, royal
receptions, funeral processions, military campaigns,
naval battles, floods, and stranded sperm whales. But
there are also old Dutch parlour games, educational
prints, and illustrated books dealing with various
aspects of the nation's history.
Historical prints were highly newsworthy at the time of
publication. Publishers and engravers were anxious to
get a print of some current event onto the market as
quickly as possible, in order to steal a march on their
competitors. To that end, old copper plates were often
used: the image or inscription was retouched and
modified to suit the new situation, resulting in prints with
almost exactly the same representation but depicting
different events.
And finally, the exhibition also focuses on the interest
which historians and art historians displayed in these
prints. The historian Robert Fruin, for example, regarded
them as an important visual source, and he advised and
encouraged Muller during the compilation of his
catalogue. Fruin was fascinated by this particular aspect
of his discipline, to which Muller had drawn his attention.
Indeed, on the occasion of his twenty-fifth anniversary as
professor at Leiden University, admirers presented him
with a cabinet which was designed by Cuypers and
contained over one hundred historical prints.
The historian Johan Huizinga took a somewhat more
ambivalent view of the historical print. While at university
he took up the drawing pen himself, and illustrated his
history of the Netherlands by means of caricatures.
These historical sketches were later published.
All the prints and drawings in Frederik Muller's atlas
have been transferred to microfilm, in order to make
them accessible to the public and protect the sheets
from wear and tear. A selection from the atlas will soon
be available on the Internet.
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