Houtvlot wordt door bemanning ontbonden in haven van Dordrecht 1785

Carel Frederik Bendorp made this print of the port of Dordrecht sometime in the late 18th century. It is an etching, made by incising lines on a metal plate and using acid to deepen them before printing. The scene shows the laborious process of dismantling a timber raft, which had been floated downriver from forested areas. Look closely, and you can see men using long poles to maneuver the logs, separating them for further transport or use. It's a striking illustration of the scale of the timber industry at this time. The logs weren’t just commodities, they were a lifeline for shipbuilding, construction and fuel. The print makes it clear that the process involved an immense amount of manual labor. The figures are small but essential, and their collective effort is what brings the scene to life. Prints like this one invite us to think about the relationship between commerce, labor, and the environment – all elements interwoven in the making and unmaking of this floating architecture.