Portret van Dominique André de Kaunitz 1697 - 1707

This is Gérard Edelinck's portrait of Dominique André de Kaunitz, an engraving made sometime around the late 17th century, somewhere in Europe. Here, visual codes of status are deployed as Kaunitz is framed within an oval, itself set within a rectangular border, ornamented with ribbons, rosettes, and heraldic crests. Kaunitz was a significant diplomat during a period of intense negotiation between European powers. Details of his titles and affiliations are inscribed, in Latin, at the bottom. Such information offers insight into the institutional and political life of the time. Edelinck would have been reliant on patronage from figures like Kaunitz, and it is likely that he had ties to academic institutions, which would have provided him with access to knowledge and resources. As historians, we can look to written sources to more fully understand the social networks that made this print possible. By researching the institutions of art and politics, we can appreciate the myriad contexts that contributed to its meaning.