De St. Geertruida-kapel in Prinsenbeek Possibly 1729

Cornelis Pronk made this sketch of the St. Geertruida Chapel in Prinsenbeek with pen in grey ink in 1729. What’s fascinating about a simple image like this is how much it can tell us about the cultural role of religious institutions in the Dutch Republic. We see a modest chapel, neatly situated within a village, its presence interwoven with the daily lives of the community. Pronk's sketch captures the close relationship between the church and the common people of the time. The small scale of the chapel suggests a local, intimate setting for worship, rather than the grand, imposing cathedrals often associated with religious power. The buildings surrounding the chapel give the image a very grounded, local, and temporal feel. To fully understand this work, we would need to delve into local archives, perhaps studying the records of the chapel itself, or looking at maps and documents from the period. By doing so, we can uncover the layers of meaning embedded in this seemingly simple sketch.