The Conversation, Dutch Costume Print, Maaskamp, 1811

This is an original antique copper engraving with hand coloring, plate No. 20 of Maaskamp's series on Dutch dress and customs, captioned in Dutch "De Zamenspraak." Two women stand talking, one resting a hand on the other's shoulder. The left wears a lace cap with gold ornaments and long gold pendant earrings, a lace veil, a white kerchief with a gold brooch, a pink red bodice printed with flowers, a black skirt over a blue underskirt and green shoes. The right wears a white sun bonnet, a coral necklace, a blue jacket with a white kerchief edged in black, a red and blue checked band at the waist, a gray apron over a paler skirt, blue stockings and buckled shoes.

The Dutch caption translates as "The Conversation." The French caption reads "La Conversation.", that is, "The Conversation." Below the image the credits read "C. Overman, delin." at lower left, "J. Kuÿper, direx." in the center and "L. Portman, sculp." at lower right, naming C. Overman as the draughtsman, J. Kuyper as the artistic director and L. Portman as the engraver. The imprint reads "Amsterdam, 1811. by E. Maaskamp, Kalverstraat en Dam. No. 1." with a second line, "London, Publish'd by Colnaghi & Co. Cockspur Street. No. 43.", naming the London print sellers Colnaghi and Co.

The plate belongs to Afbeeldingen van de Kleedingen, Zeden en Gewoonten in de Noordelijke Provinciën van het Koningrijk der Nederlanden, the survey of dress, manners and customs in the northern Netherlands published in Amsterdam by Evert Maaskamp, with a parallel French text. Each plate pairs its figures with a short exchange in Dutch, sometimes in regional dialect, and in French, so the costume studies also read as small genre scenes.

A single plate frames well on its own, and several from the series hang well together as a group.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.