Allegorische voorstelling met Neptunus en stedenmaagd 1749

This allegorical print featuring Neptune and a city maiden was produced by an anonymous artist in the Netherlands, sometime in the 18th century. During this era, the Dutch Republic was a major center for cartography and the production of maps and atlases. The print depicts Neptune, the Roman god of the sea, alongside a female figure representing a city. These figures flank a title cartouche for a new geographical and historical atlas. Angels and cherubic figures fill the skies above. The composition is a symbolic representation of power and knowledge, with the sea god and the city maiden embodying the domains of nature and civilization. It suggests a worldview rooted in a specific time, place, and the cultural values of the Dutch Golden Age. The atlas offered not just geographical data but also shaped understandings of the world and its peoples. It invites us to reflect on how the creation and dissemination of knowledge are always intertwined with cultural, political, and economic forces.