THE LOVE LETTER

(De liefdesbrief)

c. 1667-1670
oil on canvas
17 3/8 x 15 1/8 in.  (44 x 38.5.cm)
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

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literacy, letter-writing & suitable maids


Cupid with a Messanger
emblem from Otto Vaenius, Amorum Emblemata...
Antwerp, 1608
Library, Faculty of Arts Utrecht University

Although an upsurge letter writing had given birth given to a thriving postal service in the 17th century Netherlands, it was far from organized. Messengers multiplied but complaints often arose about these "hirelings" who tended to inflate postage rates. They were also noted for their impertinent behavior. Some great men and well-to-do private citizens retained their own trusted private couriers in order to maintain communications secret. Even though in the Netherlands the literacy rate was unusually high, females were less literate since they were usually given less formal education and were not permitted to attend Latin school.

Servant girls could rarely sign their name and probably could not read, suggesting that they provided an exceptionally discreet corps of letter delivery. The Hague poet Jacob Westerbaen, enlarging on Ovid's Art of Love, recommended women to "show your mind with letters," to learn to hold the quill in the right hand and the lyre in the left, and to entrust letters with suitable maids.

The Love letter, Johannes Vermeer

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The Voice of the Ghost
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