Piramiden van Egypte 1610 - 1638

Magdalena van de Passe created "Piramiden van Egypte," an engraving, during the Dutch Golden Age, a time of burgeoning global trade and intense fascination with the exotic 'Other'. This image presents the pyramids not merely as architectural feats, but as symbols of an ancient, mysterious civilization ripe for European interpretation and, by extension, domination. The artist, a woman in a male-dominated field, imprints her perspective on this representation. The inclusion of detailed scenes of labor and the prominent figure of a European-looking leader overseeing the construction subtly hints at themes of power, exploitation, and the cultural appropriation that accompanied colonial expansion. It's a narrative not just of discovery, but of the imposition of a European gaze onto a non-European landscape. The engraving invites us to consider the emotional and intellectual distance between the artist and her subject, and the complex interplay of admiration and appropriation that characterized European engagement with the wider world.