Gezicht op de Montelbaanstoren en het West-Indisch huis in Amsterdam 1713 - 1766

Hendrik de Leth made this print of the Montelbaanstoren and the West India House in Amsterdam sometime in the 18th century. As an engraver, de Leth would have begun by meticulously incising lines into a copper plate. The lines would then hold ink, and when pressed onto paper, transfer the image. The success of a print like this hinges on the engraver’s skill to produce clean, crisp lines, which is evident in the details of the architecture and the rigging of the ships. But the medium of printmaking also tells us something about its purpose. Prints like these were relatively inexpensive to produce and purchase, facilitating the distribution of images to a broad audience. In this case, it offered a view of Amsterdam’s bustling harbor, a testament to the city’s economic power and global reach. The image's sharp details allow us to see the architecture that was directly related to the city's trade with the West Indies. By appreciating the material and process of printmaking, we can recognize how this artwork participated in the commercial culture of its time.