The Moving Statues of Seventeenth-Century Amsterdam: Automata, Waxworks, Fountains, Labyrinths

This book opens a window onto a fascinating and understudied aspect of the visual, material, intellectual, and cultural history of seventeenth-century Amsterdam: the role played by its inns and taverns, specifically the __doolhoven.__ __Doolhoven__ were a type of labyrinth unique to early modern Amsterdam. Offering guest lodgings, these licensed public houses also housed remarkable displays of artwork in their gardens and galleries. The main attractions were inventive displays of moving mechanical figures (automata) and a famed set of waxwork portraits of the rulers of Protestant Europe. Publicized as the most innovative artworks on display in Amsterdam, the __doolhoven__ exhibits presented the mercantile city as a global center of artistic and technological advancement. This evocative tour through the __doolhoven__ pub gardens—where drinking, entertainment, and the acquisition of knowledge mingled in encounters with lively displays of animated artifacts—shows that the exhibits had a forceful and transformative impact on visitors, one that moved them toward Protestant reform. Deeply researched and decidedly original, __The Moving Statues__ __of Seventeenth-Century Amsterdam__ uncovers a wealth of information about these nearly forgotten public pleasure parks, situating them within popular culture, religious controversies, global trade relations, and intellectual debates of the seventeenth century. It will appeal in particular to scholars in art history and early modern studies. Contents Illustrations Acknowledgments Introduction 1 The Closed Door: Walking In Ritual Routes 2 The Courtyard Fountain: Bacchic Rites 3 Into the Labyrinth: Containing the Human Monster The Moving Statue Strikes 4 Automata: Activating Human Behavior 5 Strange Things for Strangers: Transcultural Automata Protestant Paganism 6 Wax Portraits: Body Politics 7 Time Machines in the Golden Age: The Kairos of Clockwork Epilogue: Obsolescence Notes Bibliography Index