Gezicht op het Vondelmonument in Amsterdam 1878

This color print of the Vondel Monument in Amsterdam was made by an anonymous artist, based on a watercolor by J.C. Greive Jr. in 1878. The image depicts the statue of Joost van den Vondel, a celebrated Dutch poet and playwright. Monuments like these served a very specific public function. Here, Vondel is not just a poet, but a figure of national pride. The well-dressed women and children walking in front of the monument suggest the statue's important role as a cultural landmark for locals and visitors alike. The print itself is also interesting: it's a reproduction, making the monument and Vondel's legacy accessible on a mass scale. To understand this image better, we can dig into the history of Dutch art and civic identity in the late 19th century. What role did the Vondel Monument play in shaping Amsterdam's cultural landscape? What does it mean for the artwork to be unsigned? These are just some of the questions that art historians might ask when examining the image.