Maskerade van de Leidse studenten, 1865 (plaat 2) 1865

Jan Daniël Cornelis Carel Willem baron de Constant Rebecque created this print, titled "Maskerade van de Leidse studenten, 1865," in 1865. In this period piece, we see students in costume. Knights on horseback and figures cloaked in robes create a tableau of a historic procession. Such performances by privileged students, typically white men, reflect 19th-century European society's fascination with historical reenactment, often romanticizing the past. However, these spectacles also served to reinforce social hierarchies, both celebrating and solidifying the elite status of those participating. As viewers, we might consider what this masquerade obscures. What histories and identities are erased when the past is staged through the lens of privilege? How does the celebratory tone normalize the exclusion of marginalized voices from both the historical narrative and contemporary society? Ultimately, the print invites us to reflect on the relationship between performance, power, and the construction of history.