Buste van een muze met een lauwerkrans 1615 - 1629

This drawing of a laurel-crowned muse was made in the Netherlands, most likely in the first half of the 17th century, by Gerard ter Borch the Elder. It presents us with an allegorical figure, but it’s the social function of the allegory we should consider. The Dutch Republic was a mercantile power, its wealth built on trade and shipping. As such, the Muses were invoked less for aristocratic display than for civic purposes, for example in the decoration of town halls and guild headquarters. This drawing seems to be a study for a print, or perhaps a design for a small sculpture that would have been commissioned by a local institution. The Rijksmuseum possesses a wealth of such drawings; looking through these archives gives us a fascinating insight into the cultural life of the Dutch Golden Age. It allows us to understand how images participated in the construction of a new national identity.