Handelsetiket met een leeuw c. 1681 - 1740

This is a trade label with a lion, made by Isaac Vincentsz. van der Vinne, a Dutch artist who lived between 1665 and 1740. Engraved images like this one functioned as a brand in the burgeoning world of global trade. What does it mean to use a lion as your logo? In Europe the lion symbolizes courage, nobility, royalty, and stateliness. It is an emblem of power and might. Here, the lion appears passive, laying down with its paw on a ball. Does that undercut the message of power? The label is also adorned with commodities, stacked high around the regal animal. It gives the image a sense of industriousness and commerce, as if to suggest that these products are as mighty and majestic as the lion. In an era of colonialism, trade became a key attribute of European power. This seemingly simple label tells a complex story about commerce and empire.