Lijst van dieren in derde deel van de viervoeters 1809 - 1814

This page, "Lijst van dieren in derde deel van de viervoeters" was made by Joseph van Huerne, in the late 18th to early 19th century. It’s a list of animals, written in three columns, and three different languages; early Dutch, Latin, and French. The materials are simple: paper, ink, and thread. You can see the ruled lines, done by hand before the text was added. The handwriting tells us a lot about the pace of production. This was not a fast, industrial process but a careful transcription of information, intended to last. The book’s purpose was clearly to organize knowledge, recording and translating the names of beasts, great and small. Consider the labor involved in the bookmaking and transcription process. It speaks to a world where literacy and skill were valued, and where the careful accumulation of knowledge was a pursuit in itself. Far from being a mass-produced object, this book represents a personal investment of time and expertise. It stands as a testament to the enduring power of craft in the age of enlightenment.