Kermisprent van de Amsterdamse courantombrengers voor het jaar 1849 1849

Jacob Coldewijn made this print for Amsterdam's newspaper deliverers in 1849, using etching on paper. This was a time of great change, just after the 1848 revolutions that swept through Europe and spurred the creation of new constitutions. This print offers a window into the cultural landscape of the Netherlands. The text is a poem celebrating the deliverers and wishing the citizens of Amsterdam well. Images of local landmarks are framed in ovals at the top, visually rooting the text in its specific place. Such prints were often commissioned by the deliverers themselves as a token of goodwill for their customers. They represent an intersection of commerce, community, and civic pride. By looking at these seemingly minor artifacts, alongside newspapers and municipal archives, we can better understand the lived experience of ordinary people and the social networks that bound them together in 19th-century Amsterdam.