We will likely never be able to establish with certainty the identity of the two Black men painted by Rembrandt. There are no documents found, linking the painting to individuals. But we can make a reasoned guess. #BlackHistoryMonth #day20 #rembrandt #identification
painting, then we can assume that the two men
were in the studio in Jodenbreestraat to be portrayed in or before 1656.
Today my article \u2018Al de swarten die hier ter stede comen\u2019 - about an Afro-Atlantic community in seventeenth century Amsterdam - was published #openaccess in @_tseg. The article is in Dutch, so I\u2019ll do a short introduction in #thread here. https://t.co/ABrNrHTT5C #twitterhistorian pic.twitter.com/CVTEWCFEiW
— Mark Ponte (@voetnoot) March 12, 2019
Mixed marriages have been part of European cultures for centuries. In 1593 Bastiaen Pieters from the kingdom of Manicongo in Africa maried the widow Trijn Pieters from Amsterdam. #migrantcity #blackamsterdam https://t.co/khqV0rgOmo pic.twitter.com/b9tlHIjdp2
— Mark Ponte (@voetnoot) December 24, 2019
'A afro-brasileira Juliana em Amsterd\xe3', I'm happy that the important story of Juliana and the Black community in 17th century Amsterdam is now available in Portuguese. #historiasdanovaholanda https://t.co/RjHq5YPni9 https://t.co/L8TEJAP0mO
— Mark Ponte (@voetnoot) December 17, 2020
During #BlackHistoryMonth everyday a tweet about Amsterdam's Black History. Read some stories on my blog: https://t.co/aqrp5BY22v pic.twitter.com/sWVx8WGeZa
— Mark Ponte (@voetnoot) February 2, 2021
More from History
Here’s a thread of some of the stuff referenced in the podcast for those interested
First of all, what even is cuneiform?
It’s a writing system from the ancient Middle East, used to write several languages like Sumerian and Akkadian. Cuneiform signs can stand for whole words or syllables. Here’s a little primer of its evolution https://t.co/7CVjLCHwkS
What kinds of texts was cuneiform used to write?
Initially, accounting records and lists.
Eventually, literature, astronomy, medicine, maps, architectural plans, omens, letters, contracts, law collections, and more.
Texts from the Library of Ashurbanipal, who ruled the ancient Assyrian empire when it was at its largest in the 7th century BCE, represent many of the genres of cuneiform texts and scholarship.
Here’s a short intro to the library via @opencuneiform https://t.co/wjnaxpMRrC
The Library of Ashurbanipal has a complicated modern and ancient history, which you can read about in this brilliant (and open access) book by Prof @Eleanor_Robson