Amsterdam 1783

Hendrik Leth

€ 2.250

Inter-Antiquariaat Mefferdt & De Jonge

• About the artwork

  PLAN TRES EXACT DE LA VILLE FAMEUSE MARCHANDE D'AMSTERDAM. Copper engraving printed on two sheets by Hendrik de Leth, published 1783. Measures 57.5 x 88 cm. On 24 and 27 April 1734, the following advertisement appeared in the Amsterdamsche Courant: "Te Amsterd. By Hend. De Leth on the Beurssluys, is now published, an entirely new and accurate Plan of the city of Amsterdam, with many additions that were not found in any previous plans; decorated on both sides with the coats of arms of the Wel-Ed. en Groot Agtb. Heeren Burgemeesteren deezer stad, zedert de Reformatie tot nu, door voorname Liefhebbers keurig nagezien". One could choose between a rich version with family coats of arms and the coats of arms of the Amsterdam mayors on both sides, and a plain version without the coats of arms. This copy is the version without the coats of arms. Hendrik de Leth had made a reliable map amidst many competitors (such as Covens & Mortier), which was very useful in the city administration. The dignified French title seems destined for a more representative function, but for the rest the print is entirely in Dutch, which was convenient for the artisans and administrative users. Under the title we read "Gravée et mis au jour Par Henry de Leth a l'enseigne du Pecheur". This can be translated as "Engraved and updated to the present day by Hendrik de Leth under the label of Visser." The shop of publisher Nicolaes Visscher II kept this name, even after his death in 1702. Hendrik de Leth and also his father Andries worked in Visscher's shop when he was still alive. After Visscher's death his widow Elisabeth Verseyl continued the business until 1726. From about 1720, however, the daily management was in the hands of Andries. After he took over the business, he maintained the shop's well-known name. After his death in 1731, Hendrik, the son of Andries, took over. He too continued with the same shop name. The map is extremely clear and uncluttered, with only the main buildings standing out. Hendrik de Leth made the map after an older example and provided it with completely new decoration. An interesting difference between the map by De Leth and the earlier one is that De Leth gave the buildings engraved in the uprising a shadow. The sunlight here comes from the left, which corresponds to the eastern morning sun. To the left of the decorative, opening curtain, we see a Caarte van Amstelland. It is striking that in the legend block in the top right-hand corner, an I is mentioned after nine buildings. The legend explains this with the words NB Daar een I bystaat betekent Jansenisten. Jansenism, named after Cornelis Jansenius (1585-1638), was a religious and political movement from the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries that developed mainly in France as a reaction to certain developments in the Catholic Church and to the absolutism of the rulers of those days. The Jansenists' way of life was characterised by their ascetic rejection of the world and their pessimistic ethics. They also rejected, among other things, papal infallibility. The accentuation of the buildings on the map that had a relationship with Jansenism suggests that the engraver and publisher Hendrik de Leth adhered to this political movement. The central representation under the map is designed with care and taste. The title plate is beautifully incorporated into a group of figures, in which the city virgin is flanked by the two lions of the city arms and the river gods of Amstel and IJ, while Fortuna rises from the sea. The compass rose and ruler, like the title, have been given a three-dimensional shape as part of this grouping. The city seal and coat of arms above the map are carried by two angels. Literature: Marc Hameleers - Maps of Amsterdam 1538-1865, nr. 114 p.228-231 Price: Euro 2.250
• About the artist

  Hendrik de Leth (Amsterdam, May 31, 1703 - Amsterdam, June 17, 1766) was a print artist, etcher, engraver, mapmaker, draftsman, bookseller, art dealer, publisher of prints, art collector and naturalia collector.

  Hendrik de Leth was the son of Andries de Leth (plate cutter, bookseller, 1662-1731) and Nelletje Middenheespen. Hendrik had an older brother, Christiaan de Leth. In 1742 Hendrik married Sophia Otto, who died in 1753. Their marriage remained childless. It was likely that nephew Andries, son of Hendrik's brother Christiaan, would become the successor to Hendrik's business. However, he died in 1743. In 1766 Hendrik de Leth had a will drawn up just before his death, whereby Catharina le Blanc, granddaughter of brother Christiaan, became heiress. On September 30, 1766, the auction of his estate took place.[3]

  In 1728, Hendrik joined the booksellers' guild. Before that he was a student of his father Andries de Leth, who had taken over the map, print and art dealership 'Op de Beurssluys, in den Visscher' in Amsterdam from the cartographer and printmaker Nicolaas Visscher II. Hendrik de Leth in turn took over this company after the death of his father in 1731.

  As early as 1725, the work Images of the Wijdtvermaarde city of Amsterdam was published in addition to its most important Buildings and Gesites, all accurately drawn after life and published in Amsterdam.

  His best-known work with 100 prints was published in 1730: The blessing splendor Kennemerlant : shows many glorious faces of the latter's most important pleasure places, noble houses, village and town buildings : starting with Kastrikum (...) / drawn after life and in the copper brought by H. de Leth; and briefly described by M. Brouërius van Nidek. - Amsterdam : De Leth, 1730. Many prints that De Leth made of Amsterdam can be found in the Amsterdam City Archives.

  As a cartographer, De Leth was best known for his New Geographical Atlas and Historical Atlas, Van de Zeven Vereenigde Nederlandsche Provintien, published in 1740. De Leth also became known for the copper engravings he made around 1758 of the General Map of the Colony or Province of Suriname after the design of Alexander de Lavaux.

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