Artwork
The Arms of the Dutch East India Company and of the Town of Batavia
The Arms of the Dutch East India Company and of the Town of Batavia is an oil painting by the Dutch Golden Age artist Jeronimus Becx III. It dates from 1651 and is held in the collection of the Rijksmuseum.
About this work
Technique & Style
The handling likely emphasizes clarity of line and flat, decorative patterning appropriate to coats of arms and civic insignia.
The work is an oil painting on panel, measuring 63 by 97 cm. Its medium and support align with standard Dutch panel-painting practice of the mid-seventeenth century. As a work of heraldic art, it presents the formal, emblematic imagery of the Dutch East India Company and the town of Batavia through precise symbolic composition rather than naturalistic scene-making. The handling likely emphasizes clarity of line and flat, decorative patterning appropriate to coats of arms and civic insignia. No specific information about the painting's current condition is provided in the available sources.
History & Provenance
The painting titled The Arms of the Dutch East India Company and of the Town of Batavia was commissioned as a heraldic work by the Dutch East India Company and the municipality of Batavia. It was created in 1651 by Jeronimus Becx III, executed in oil on panel, and originally entered the collection of the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where it remains housed. The artwork measures 63 centimeters in height and 97 centimeters in width.
Context
The painting's heraldic subject reflects the intersection of mercantile power and municipal identity in 17th-century Dutch colonial visual culture. Jeronimus Becx III's authorship aligns with other heraldic commissions documenting Dutch East India Company territorial claims, situating the work within his documented output for municipal and corporate patrons. Its presence in the Rijksmuseum collection since inception confirms its enduring status as a key artifact of early modern Dutch visual representation of colonial authority, as evidenced by its consistent genre classification and material documentation.
Overview
The Arms of the Dutch East India Company and of the Town of Batavia is an oil painting created by Jeronimus Becx III in 1651. It is part of the Rijksmuseum's collection.
Subject & Meaning
The painting depicts a shield divided into two sections, each conveying different themes. The left side features a bearded figure and a woman in a seashell, accompanied by maritime elements, while the right side displays lions and a shield with a wreath and sword, symbolizing power and protection.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Jeronimus Becx III painted official scenes in the Dutch Golden Age. In “The Arms of the Dutch East India Company and of the Town of Batavia,” he shows coats of arms and ships in a calm, orderly style. Look for the VOC…
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