Illustratie voor 'Den Arbeid van Mars' van Allain Manesson Mallet 1672

Curator: This delicate 1672 etching is entitled "Illustratie voor 'Den Arbeid van Mars' van Allain Manesson Mallet," and it comes to us from the hand of Romeyn de Hooghe. Editor: The engraving, with its depiction of a knight charging on horseback beneath geometric diagrams, feels strangely bifurcated—almost as though two distinct realities have been superimposed. Curator: It's an illustration, meant to be informative. The upper portion diagrams fortification lines; the banners above use early modern Dutch and French. It merges the practical, almost mathematical considerations of warfare with its dynamic application on the battlefield. Editor: Look at the hatching though. The pressure of the engraving creates a dynamic texture to the horse, the landscape, and the clothing of the figure riding. I'm struck by the relationship between craft and geometry... How do the lines dictate, delineate the figure's movement and weight? Curator: Absolutely, and beyond the sheer craftsmanship of the lines, the imagery itself—a knight charging into battle, literally under the banner of strategic calculation—evokes a transition in military thinking. We're witnessing the rise of calculated warfare over the heroic, individual combat of prior eras. Mars, the God of War, yoked to ‘Arbeid’ – Labour, or perhaps 'Engineering', which also entails an emotional, psychological burden. Editor: It brings forward the contrast, doesn’t it? On one level, there's the very human figure, bearing weapons, moving across this space… but this depiction is created from, almost caged within, pure geometries! So we see how a shift to an ordered sense of battle began, by thinking with lines and measurement. It really underscores this transition from physical labor to perhaps an "abstract labor." Curator: That’s a compelling point. It makes you consider how traditional heroic imagery begins to be refigured when rational calculation takes precedence. Thanks for providing that alternate perspective. Editor: Thank you. It shows how the real art emerges through shifts in labour practice.