Portrait of Cornelis Jacobsz de Boer, Captain in the Navy 1674

Jan van Neck painted this portrait of Cornelis Jacobsz de Boer, Captain in the Navy, during the Dutch Golden Age, a period of immense maritime power for the Netherlands. Portraits like this one were commodities, carefully constructed to convey status and authority. Cornelis is dressed in finery, a symbol of wealth and masculine power, underscored by the naval battle scene visible through the window. Yet, this image prompts us to consider what stories are left untold. What of the lives impacted by Dutch naval pursuits? The perspectives of those in colonized lands are notably absent, obscured by the dominant narrative of Dutch achievement. Consider the cost of empire, and who bore that cost. How does this portrait serve to immortalize not just an individual, but a specific narrative of power?