Portret van Ralph Snow 1735 - 1757

Alexander van Haecken etched this portrait of Major Ralph Snow, and immediately, the symbols of status speak volumes. Notice the globe beside him, a nod to knowledge, exploration, and power over the world, reminiscent of the celestial globes in Renaissance depictions of scholars. The globe is a motif seen in portraits of rulers, and intellectuals, linking Ralph Snow with those figures. Consider how, since antiquity, the orb has been a symbol of dominion and cosmic understanding. The elaborate wig, an emblem of the 18th-century elite, echoes the flowing locks of classical gods, subconsciously aligning the sitter with notions of authority, and timelessness. Observe how such displays of power, though reshaped through fashion, persistently resurface, tapping into our deep-seated associations with status, and command.