Uittocht van boogschutters before 1864

Charles Rochussen made this print of the Archer’s Guild in the Netherlands in the nineteenth century. It depicts a large group of archers in a courtyard, preparing to exit through an arched gateway. Rochussen was a master of genre painting, and here he captures a scene that speaks to civic identity and social organization. The Archer’s Guild, or Schutterij, played an important role in Dutch society, acting as a voluntary civil guard responsible for maintaining order and defending cities. These guilds were also social institutions, fostering a sense of community and civic pride among its members. Prints such as this one reveal a great deal about Dutch society in the 1800s, particularly the enduring importance of historical traditions in shaping social identity. Historians of imagery can look to sources like guild records, civic documents, and contemporary accounts to understand the important function of these images in shaping public life. This kind of archival research allows us to understand art as something that is deeply embedded in social and institutional contexts.