Portret van een onbekende vrouw

This is a photograph by Wilhelm Frederick Antonius Delboy, titled *Portret van een onbekende vrouw*, or Portrait of an Unknown Woman. Fashionable women of the late 19th century had very particular roles, and one of the few ways that they could express themselves was through clothing. This woman is wearing an austere, dark dress, but she has accessorized it with a decorative star-shaped pin and ribbon. What can these small deviations from the social expectation tell us about her? Does it show her rebellion from the restrictive expectations of the time, or her silent commitment to the state? In contrast to this, the image’s description tells us that this is the portrait of an unknown woman, which highlights the historical context where many women were not recognized for their individual achievements. Delboy’s portrait invites us to see the individual within the type, and to wonder about the emotions, dreams, and realities of this woman's life.