Gezicht op het Kasteel Froidmont 1692

Johann Friedrich Leonard made this print, titled "View of Froidmont Castle", sometime in the 17th century. We see the castle in the context of its wider estate; the artist aims to show not just the castle, but the land and the properties that surround and support it. The vantage point and style are interesting here. It's not quite a bird's eye view, but the artist elevates us to see the castle and the surrounding landscape. It gives us a sense of the wealth and power of the castle's owners and perhaps gives us a clue as to why these kinds of images were commissioned. This aesthetic was popular in the Netherlands and wider Europe, for wealthy landowners and those who wished to display their assets. Notice the escutcheons with heraldic emblems in the upper corners, and consider their symbolic function in communicating status. Historians look to images like this alongside estate records, tax documents, and family histories, in order to get a fuller picture of the socio-economic structures of the time. What does the image tell us, and what does it conceal?