Public domain
Box of the Dutch West India Company
From the collection of Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Free to download, adapt and use — no permission needed.
About this work
Stadholder William IV received this box in 1749 as the new administrator of the Dutch West India Company (WIC). The decorations on the box refer to the WIC’s activities: trade in gold, ivory, and people. To the left of the man with the elephant tusk is a European. He is giving money to another man who is pointing to two adults and a child. This is one of the few known depictions of the slave trade.
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam’s own descriptionCredit lineBox of the Dutch West India Company. 1749. Jean Saint. Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam. Public domain.
