Portret van Jan Baptist Lencken 1608

This engraving of Jan Baptist Lencken was made by Hendrick Hondius I, sometime between the late 16th and mid-17th century. Lencken was a noble advisor and ambassador to the Margrave of Brandenburg, as well as a negotiator in peace treaties between the United Provinces. The portrait is enclosed in an oval frame with an inscription around it. Below the image is a description of Lencken’s titles and affiliations. Hondius made the image using a technique that allowed for the easy reproduction of images. Prints like this one circulated widely across Europe, allowing people to see and recognize the faces of political figures. We might consider this print as part of the history of early modern media and the way that powerful people sought to manage their reputations. To understand this image better, we can turn to archives and libraries to discover the documents of political and cultural life in the early modern period.