Tafreelen uit het leven der Apostelen. Vestiging van het Christendom 1849

This illustrated print, "Tafreelen uit het leven der Apostelen. Vestiging van het Christendom", was created by Jan Schuitemaker. The work is a lithograph, a printing process that democratized image-making in the 19th century. Lithography allowed for the relatively quick and inexpensive reproduction of images, making art more accessible to a broader audience, and cheaper to produce. The process involves drawing on a flat stone or metal plate with a greasy substance, then treating the surface so that ink adheres only to the drawn areas. This print illustrates scenes from the lives of the Apostles and the establishment of Christianity, narrating biblical stories through a series of small vignettes. The use of lithography here speaks to the changing landscape of art production and consumption, reflecting a shift towards mass production. The high level of detail achieved would have involved a well-trained artisan, making it more readily available to the public, and pointing toward an increasingly industrialized society.