Auction 109 Books | Letters and Manuscripts | Megillot and Jewish Ceremonial Art
The Heroic Deeds of the Tin Knights Against the Jewish Pastry Women – Political Engraving Opposing the Dutch Patriot Movement – 1787
Opening: $300
Sold for: $475
Including buyer's premium
Heldendaaden der Blikke Banquet Ruyters tegen de Joodsche Plaatkoeken Vrouwen [The heroic deeds of the tin knights against the Jewish pastry women]. [Holland, ca. 1787]. Dutch.
Satirical-political engraving by an anonymous artist (unsigned), meant to be viewed near a light source to reveal a hidden layer of the picture (hold-to-light print).
The engraving mocks the Patriot militias in Holland and their violence towards the Jewish community. In the illustration, a Patriot soldier is depicted riding an underfed horse over a bridge towards a Jewish woman selling pastries. When the engraving is held to the light, the hidden layer reveals the soldier on the ground of hell, with the devil riding his back holding a sword.
This engraving was printed during the fierce political struggle in the 1780s Netherlands between the Patriots and the Orangists. The majority of Dutch Jews supported the House of Orange, making them a target for violence by the Patriots. The present engraving depicts the Patriot ridiculously displaying his strength not in the battlefield but by molesting defenseless Jewish women in the marketplace.
The bottom of the engraving features a biting six-line poems naming the Patriot with a contemporary epithet ("Kees") and comparing him to Don Quixote, foretelling his fall at the hands of the devil.
See: Rijksmuseum collection, Amsterdam (RP-P-OB-85.962); Frederik Muller catalog, no. 5025.
Leaf: 13X13.5 cm. Good condition. Minor defects. Matted.
Provenance: Collection of Mozes Heiman Gans; see his book: M. H. Gans, Memorbook, p. 278.
Portraits – Prints, Photographs and Art
Portraits – Prints, Photographs and Art