Engel met ladder, hamer, spijkers en zalfpot c. 1581 - 1645

Curator: This delicate engraving is entitled "Engel met ladder, hamer, spijkers en zalfpot," or "Angel with ladder, hammer, nails and ointment pot." It's attributed to Karel van Mallery and dates back to somewhere between 1581 and 1645. Editor: My first thought is just...melancholy. The angel has such a doleful expression. And all these tools... It feels less heavenly and more like preparation for a very earthly, and painful, task. Curator: Precisely! Van Mallery situates the figure in that pivotal space between divine messenger and a witness to earthly suffering. The ladder evokes Jacob’s Ladder, traditionally a connection between heaven and earth, while the tools relate to the Passion of Christ. Editor: So it’s about sacrifice? The angel as both comforter and a premonition of pain? The ointment, of course, suggests healing... or perhaps, in a darker reading, preparation for burial. Are we meant to see the ladder as a symbol for the climb toward redemption, reached only through intense suffering? Curator: It’s that Baroque fascination with drama and emotion, isn't it? The angel isn’t just floating serenely; she’s actively involved, contemplating the human cost of divine intervention. Also note the artist's skill in depicting light and shadow. See how it almost caresses the angel's wings, highlighting their texture, contrasting it to the harsh lines of the tools. Editor: It's a beautiful paradox, really. The soft, almost sensual treatment of the angel contrasted with the hard, cold reality of those instruments. Is there also a social dimension here? This preparation for an execution has unsettling links with how social outsiders—dissidents, blasphemers—were also subjected to torturous punishments and public executions during the Baroque era. Curator: An important observation! Absolutely, considering the era’s social upheavals and religious conflicts, this image might be read as a potent commentary on power, injustice, and the redemptive possibilities even in the darkest hours. It certainly inspires empathy and contemplation. Editor: Indeed, this unassuming little engraving holds such powerful questions of faith, pain, and maybe even resistance. Makes you see these familiar religious stories through an entirely new, more challenging light, doesn't it?