Aankomst, bij den Dalm van den Sultan van Tidor 1776 - 1851

This print, "Arrival at the Dalm of the Sultan of Tidor," was made by Daniël Veelwaard sometime in the late 18th or early 19th century using etching and engraving techniques. The image shows the Sultan’s residence. As you can see, it’s a very linear, precise style, entirely dependent on the artist’s skill in draftsmanship. But in a deeper sense, the print is also about the administration of labor. Etching and engraving allowed images to be reproduced at scale, and distributed widely. This was an essential technology for the management of global trade in the 19th century, and the establishment of colonial power. Look closely, and you’ll see many small figures. The artist has skillfully rendered these people, but also flattened them to a common type. In this way, the print is a visual demonstration of the way that the world was being understood through the lens of early capitalism: as a resource to be efficiently managed.