Southern Netherlands Research Articles

Three Fragments of the "Mystic Capture of the Unicorn" Tapestry

The article discusses the Mystic Capture of the fragments of the Hunt of the Unicorn tapestries made in the Southern Netherlands from 1495-1505 and located in the Cloisters in New York City. The author traces the provenance of the fragments and compares them to the other Hunt of the Unicorn tapestries. Specific topics include the condition of the tapestries, the types of thread used including gilt-silver-wrapped thread, the color preservation of the fragments, and the weaving technique used for the fragments. Also discussed is conservation work on the Hunt of the Unicorn tapestries at the Metropolitan Museum of Art and Cloisters museum.

Illuminated manuscripts in Cambridge: a catalogue of Western book illumination in the Fitzwilliam Museum and the Cambridge colleges: Part 1, v.1: The Frankish kingdoms, northern Netherlands, Germany, Bohemia, Hungary, Austria; Part 1, v.2: The Meuse region, southern Netherlands

Illuminated manuscripts in Cambridge: a catalogue of Western book illumination in the Fitzwilliam Museum and the Cambridge colleges: Part 1, v.1: The Frankish kingdoms, northern Netherlands, Germany, Bohemia, Hungary, Austria; Part 1, v.2: The Meuse region, southern Netherlands

On Brabant Rubbish, Economic Competition, Artistic Rivalry, and the Growth of the Market for Paintings in the First Decades of the Seventeenth Century

English translation of E. J. Sluijter, Over Brabantse vodden, economische concurrentie, artistieke wedijver en de groei van de markt voor schilderijen in de eerste decennia van de zeventiende eeuw, in Kunst voor de markt, ed. R. Falkenburg, J. de Jong, and B. Ramakers, Nederlands Kunsthistorisch Jaarboek 50 (1999): 112-43. The text was translated by Jennifer Kilian and Katy Kist with footnotes translated by the author. This essay presents observations on how and why the number of painters and the production of paintings in Holland increased so spectacularly around 1610. It also discusses the technical changes, the economic competition, and the artistic emulation related to this increase. It is argued that the sudden wave of inexpensive paintings from Antwerp that flooded the Dutch art markets in the first years of the Twelve Years Truce - paintings which seem to have been bought avidly by immigrants from the Southern Netherlands in particular - functioned as a booster. Decorating the house with a variety of rather inexpensive paintings, something the immigrants were already familiar with, caught on with the native population. Second generation immigrants took advantage of this profitable gap in the market and competed with the imported works by producing paintings with similar techniques and subjects, but of a higher quality.

First report of a North American invasive mosquito species Ochlerotatus atropalpus (Coquillett) in the Netherlands, 2009

In late August and early September 2009, numerous larvae, pupae, and actively flying adult specimens of Ochlerotatus atropalpus were discovered in the Province of Brabant, southern Netherlands, during surveillance activities for Aedes albopictus at two trading companies that import used tires. No Ae. albopictus were found. Both companies mainly import used tires from countries in Europe, but also from North America. Oc. atropalpus is endemic to North America and has so far only been found outside of its endemic range in Europe, namely France and Italy, where it was subsequently eradicated. A preliminary modelling study shows that the weather conditions in the Netherlands are unlikely to prevent establishment of Oc. atropalpus. This species has so far only been shown to serve as a vector for virus transmission under laboratory conditions. Studies on potential human and veterinary health risks, as well as possible control strategies are currently ongoing.

A flux-limiting wetting–drying method for finite-element shallow-water models, with application to the Scheldt Estuary

We present a flux-limiting wetting–drying approach for finite-element discretizations of the shallow-water equations using discontinuous linear elements for the elevation. The key ingredient of the method is the use of limiters for generalized nodal fluxes. This method is implemented into the Second-generation Louvain-la-Neuve Ice-ocean Model (SLIM), and is verified against standard test cases. The method is further applied to the wetting and drying of sand banks in the Scheldt Estuary, which is located in northern Belgium and the southern Netherlands. The results obtained for both the benchmarks and the realistic problem illustrate the accuracy of the method in describing the hydrodynamics in the vicinity of dry areas. In particular, the method strictly conserves mass, and there is no transport through dry areas.

Second-hand consumption as a way of life: public auctions in the surroundings of Alost in the late eighteenth century

AbstractThis article seeks to place second-hand consumption, or the reuse of older objects, into the expanding historical literature on early modern consumer practices. It claims that the study of second-hand consumption remains a much neglected topic of historical interest. Further empirical research of pre-industrial reuse habits is needed to examine essential problems and inconsistencies concerning consumers and their handling of older goods. On the basis of rarely used sources relating to public auctions in the countryside of the southern Netherlands, key questions regarding the current debate will be addressed. These questions concern the products that were handled, the actors involved, and how reuse was (or was not) affected by broader changes in society.

The Twelve Years Truce and the Formation of the Classical Law of Nations

The signing of the Twelve Years Truce at Antwerp on April 9, 1609 was a major event in the political and diplomatic history of the Low Countries and of Europe. For the Low Countries, it meant the – albeit temporary – end of a drawn-out conflict that started as a civil war and grew into a full-blown war of secession. Although the period of truce with Spain and the Southern Netherlands would be ripe with religious and civil unrest in the Northern Netherlands, it was also a crucial period in the formation of the Republic as a sovereign State and as a great power within and without Europe. At the European level, after the Franco-Spanish Peace Treaty of Vervins (1598) and the Anglo-Spanish Peace Treaty of London (1604), the Antwerp Truce was the final step in Spain’s policy of disentanglement of the major wars it had been involved in since the 1590s or before. But the Truce was also an important stepping-stone in the formation of the classical law of nations.

Improving lymph node detection in colon cancer in community hospitals and their pathology department in southern Netherlands

Aim The aim was to investigate whether a set of measures directed at increasing lymph node (LN) detection among colon cancer patients led to clinically relevant changes in LN detection rate. Methods Data of all patients with curative colon cancer (pT any N any M0) diagnosed in 1999–2007 whose resection specimens were evaluated by the Institute for Pathology and Medical Microbiology in Eindhoven ( n = 1501) were included. Feedback to specialists, increased fixation time, and ex-vivo injection of the specimen with Patent blue V dye were used to increase LN detection rate. Trends in the proportion of patients with insufficient LNs examined were investigated; moreover, the Patent blue-stained patients ( n = 86) were compared with a group of unstained patients ( n = 84). Based on the decrease in the proportion of high-risk node-negative patients, a calculation of chemotherapy-related costs saved was made. Results The proportion of patients with <12 LNs examined decreased from 87% in 1999 to 48% in 2007 ( p trend < 0.0001). In the stained group this was 37%, versus 56% for the unstained group ( p = 0.010). In 1999, 79% of stage II patients were high-risk compared to 55% in 2007, which translates to a saving of almost 1,000,000 euro based on 92 stage II patients diagnosed in 2007. Conclusion A diverse set of measures increased the number of examined lymph nodes among patients with colon cancer. Large savings can be made due to the reduced proportion of high-risk node-negative patients who would otherwise have received adjuvant chemotherapy.

Landscape Biography as Research Strategy: The Case of the South Netherlands Project

This paper presents the outline of a biographical approach to landscape as developed in the Netherlands during the last 15 years by archaeologists, thereby integrating perspectives formulated by the social anthropologists Appadurai and Kopytoff and the cultural geographer Samuels. The result is a historicising longue durée perspective, that runs from the later prehistory up to the present-day, and that focuses on the study of the interrelationships between spatial transformations, social and economic changes and the construction of regional and local identities in the region. This approach also offers interesting possibilities for applications in the sphere of heritage management, landscape design and spatial planning. The implementation of this biographical approach to landscape is illustrated by presenting a case-study for the southern Netherlands, a semi-urban region which ranks among the most intensively studied cultural landscapes of Western Europe.

‘Adaptive’ Psychosocial Factors in Relation to Home Blood Pressure: A Study in the General Population of Southern Netherlands

BackgroundEvidence is accumulating for an association between psychosocial stress and elevated blood pressure. However, studies focusing on adaptive psychosocial factors are scarce.PurposeWe examined the association between putatively adaptive psychosocial factors and home blood pressure in a population study in the Netherlands.MethodResting blood pressure was measured of 985 female and 777 male participants between 20 and 55 years of age in their home setting. Questionnaires assessing problem-focused coping (active coping), adaptive emotion-focused coping (positive reinterpretation) and social support were completed.ResultsWhen controlled for age, marital and socio-economic status, body mass index, parental history of hypertension, physical exercise, smoking, alcohol, coffee, and—in women—oral contraceptives, positive reinterpretation was associated with a lower prevalence of elevated home blood pressure (≥140/90 mmHg): OR = 0.60, 95% CI = 0.40–0.88 (P = 0.009). Although all three psychosocial variables were associated with both systolic and diastolic blood pressure level, in multivariable analyses, only the associations between systolic blood pressure and positive reinterpretation (β = −0.09, t = 3.25, P = 0.001) and active coping (β = 0.07, t = 2.65, P = 0.008) remained significant.ConclusionIndependent of other factors, only positive reinterpretation of the situation appeared to be related to more favorable blood pressure levels.

Improvable quality of diagnostic assessment of colorectal cancer in southern Netherlands

To determine the extent of guideline implementation of the diagnostic approach in patients with colorectal cancer (CRC) in southern Netherlands in 2005, with special focus on colonoscopy. Data were extracted from the medical records for a random sample of 257 colon and 251 rectal cancer patients newly diagnosed in 2005 and recorded from the Eindhoven Cancer Registry. Adherence to guidelines was determined for diagnostic assessment. Multivariable logistic regression analysis was conducted to assess determinants of complete colonoscopy. Diagnostic assessment was carried out mainly by internists (50%) and gastroenterologists (36%). Colonoscopy was performed in 83% of patients with proximal/transverse colon cancer, 55% of those with distal colon cancer, and 65% of those with rectal cancer. A tumour biopsy was taken for 84% of colon and 93% of rectal tumours. Colonoscopy completeness was lower for patients with comorbidity, obstructing tumours, and patients with poor bowel preparation. Abdominal ultrasound was performed for 72% of colon and 52% of rectal cancer patients and a thoracic radiography of over 80% of CRC patients. Computed tomography (CT) of the abdomen was performed in over half of the colon cancer patients and a pelvic CT scan or magnetic resonance imaging in 36% of rectal cancer patients. Improvements in adherence to diagnostic guidelines for CRC appear possible, especially in the performance of imaging procedures. Among patients where complete visualization of the colon was not feasible with colonoscopy, imaging techniques such as virtual CT might be of added value in the near future.

Dutch Religious Love Emblems: Reflections of Faith and Toleration in the Later 17th Century

In this article, I examine the process of appropriation demonstrated in early modern Dutch religious love emblems published in the Dutch Republic around 1700. These religious love emblems were adaptations of Roman Catholic emblem books, originally made by Jesuits or priests in the Southern Netherlands around 1630. The reconstruction of the network formed by these religious emblems in the Republic, and an analysis of the gaps between the originals and their adaptations, allow us to take a closer look at changing attitudes towards religious faith and religious toleration at the time.

Increasing incidence and decreasing mortality of colorectal cancer due to marked cohort effects in southern Netherlands

In preparation for any type of forthcoming colorectal cancer (CRC) mass screening we examined trends in CRC incidence and mortality according to sex, subsite and age in southern Netherlands. Population-based data from the Eindhoven Cancer Registry during the period 1975-2004 were used. Age-period-cohort analyses were performed to investigate possible aetiologic, diagnostic or therapeutic origins of the trends. Age-adjusted (European Standardized Rates) incidence rates for colon cancer increased since 1975 from 23 in 100 000 for both sexes to about 38 in 100 000 for males and 30 in 100 000 for females in 2004. Incidence of rectal cancer remained relatively stable at about 25 in 100 000 males and 15 in 100 000 females. The incidence of CRC increased for male patients from birth cohorts between 1900 and 1955 (P=0.010), especially in left-sided colon cancer in the younger birth cohorts [RR1900: 0.8 (95% confidence interval, CI: 0.6, 1.0), RR1960: 1.6 (95% CI: 0.9, 2.8), reference: 1910-1919]. For women a similar, although weaker increase in CRC incidence was found. Mortality rates for CRC started to decrease in 1975, more pronounced for rectal than for colon cancer. The relative risk for dying in men with CRC decreased from 1.3 (95% CI: 1.0, 1.6) in the 1900 birth cohort to 0.1 (95% CI: 0.1, 0.4) in the 1960 birth cohort, reference 1910-1919 birth cohort. The increasing incidence and decreasing mortality in CRC is largely affected by birth cohort effects. Changes in CRC incidence are likely to be attributed to lifestyle factors and decreasing mortality is due to earlier detection and improved treatment, especially among younger patients.

Population-Based Study of Trends and Variations in Radiotherapy as Part of Primary Treatment of Cancer in the Southern Netherlands Between 1988 and 2006, With an Emphasis on Breast and Rectal Cancer

To explore current variations in the use of primary radiotherapy (RT) in a region with two RT departments with adjacent referral areas, one in the eastern and one in the western sector of the southern region of the Netherlands. We calculated the proportion of 147,588 patients with newly diagnosed cancer between 1988 and 2006 in the southern Netherlands who received primary RT. Especially for breast and rectal cancer patients we studied primary RT use according to stage (breast cancer) and age and separately for the eastern and western sectors. The number of patients with new diagnoses receiving primary RT increased from 1,668 patients in 1988 to 2,971 patients in 2006, with the proportion of the overall patients receiving RT remaining more or less unchanged (+/-30%). However, only 20% of elderly patients (75+ years) received primary RT. Over time, more patients with prostate and rectal cancer, fewer patients with lung and bladder cancer or Hodgkin's lymphoma, and, recently, more patients with cervical or endometrial cancer received RT. The proportion of patients with most other tumor types treated with RT remained more or less unchanged. The total RT rate was slightly higher for patients in the eastern sector. Of particular note, patients with breast or rectal cancer in the eastern sector were significantly more likely to receive primary RT than were their counterparts in the western sector (odds ratio = 1.4, 95% confidence interval =1.4-1.5, and odds ratio = 1.4, 95% confidence interval = 1.3-1.6, respectively). Although the number of RT-treated patients increased substantially during 1988 to 2006, the proportion remained essentially unchanged. In addition, large variations were found in referral rates for RT, especially in later years, between the eastern and the western sectors of the region.

Contribution of dendrochronology to understanding of wood procurement sources for panel paintings in the former Southern Netherlands from 1450 AD to 1650 AD

Since the middle of the 1980s, dendrochronological analyses of panel paintings produced in the former Netherlands have demonstrated the near-exclusive use of oak from the Baltic region. Further, as Hillam and Tyers [1995. Reliability and repeatability in dendrochronological analysis: tests using the Fletcher archive of panel-painting data. Archaeometry 37 (2), 395–405] did for English paintings analyzed by Fletcher, the objective of the present work was to determine whether it was possible to distinguish different Baltic typologies in the wood used for paintings in the ancient Southern Netherlands from 1450 AD to 1650 AD. In this study, it appeared that the same three “English” typologies ( BALTIC1, BALTIC2 and BALTIC3) were also found in the Southern Netherlands, in proportions varying by period. The diversity of Baltic typologies in England was interpreted by Hillam and Tyers (1995) as reflecting changes in the procurement sources for wood. In addition to this diversification of Baltic typologies in the Southern Netherlands, a Western European provenance was identified for 16% of the wood used in Flemish panels. The research focused on determination of the provenance of these non-Baltic oaks, by comparison between wood from painting panels and site chronologies for all of Belgium, the northern half of France and southwest Germany. Such comparison yielded a network of good correlations between the panel ring series and site chronologies along the Franco-Belgian Meuse and the French Moselle River. Dendrochronological dates obtained for the Flemish panels in the corpus clarify the period during which diversification of Baltic sources intensified. The parallel between the very high proportion of BALTIC1 type woods in Flemish panels before 1565 AD, and its progressive decrease until complete disappearance in the 1620 AD, and quantitative data from the Sound Toll Records, among others, led to interpret the BALTIC1 typology as representing the enormous hinterland exploited by the Gdansk port, the principal place of export for wood until 1565 AD. This port then decreased in importance until its disappearance at the beginning of the 17th century. Oaks closest to BALTIC2 and BALTIC3 types reflect the percentage of exports lost to the Gdansk competitors. The period of increase in the use of oaks of BALTIC2 and BALTIC3 typologies also coincides with the appearance of the use of Meuse/Moselle oaks. Explanations for these changes are in relationship to the politico-economic and religious contexts, in particular the wars of religion starting in the 1560 AD that destabilized Europe, and the separation of Northern and Southern Netherlands in 1585 AD.

A strategy of seduction? The role of commercial advertisements in the eighteenth-century retailing business of Antwerp

This article aims to place the use of promotional advertising material in a long-term perspective. By analysing the functioning of eighteenth-century commercial notices in the retailing business of Antwerp, a provincial town in the southern Netherlands, we try to demonstrate how advertisements of this kind had no clear-cut persuasive meaning. Rather, they were used as a way of mediating information barriers between buyers and sellers and, thus, lowering transaction costs. A quantitative and semantic breakdown of the advertisements in a local newspaper, the Gazette van Antwerpen, will show the fallacies of presuming a direct manipulative force from these eighteenth-century commercial messages.

Impact of a shift in mean on the sea level rise: Application to the tide gauges in the Southern Netherlands

The rates of sea level rise during 1940–2002 estimated in the Southern Netherlands at tide gauges of Vlissingen, IJmuiden, Maassluis and Hoek van Holland vary from 1.7 to 2.7 mm/yr despite a relatively small distance ( < 140 km ) between these stations. We have supposed that the observed inconsistency between the sea level trends could be due to an abrupt shift in the mean level of the tidal records provoked by some natural or anthropogenic processes. A shift detector based on the decomposition of the observations in empirical orthogonal functions and on the generalized likelihood ratio statistic has been constructed to evaluate the probability of the presence of a shift in the observed tidal records. A rapid change of mean of 25 mm at Hoek van Holland during the 1972–1973 period and of 17 mm at Vlissingen between 1973 and 1976 have been found to be statistically significant. The estimates of the sea level rise after correcting for shifts in the Vlissingen and Hoek van Holland tidal records are highly coherent and range between 1.9 and 2.1 mm/yr.

Teacher training inside or outside the university: the Belgian compromise (1815–1890)

During the nineteenth century, educationists, professors and politicians in many European countries struggled with the question of whether secondary school teachers should be trained at the university, or in separate teachers’ colleges, where they would receive a proper vocational training. This article explores the development of the training of classics teachers in nineteenth‐century Belgium and characterises it as a compromise between the two options. When William I in 1816 established three state universities in the southern Netherlands, teacher training, which was offered during the French period at the specialised college in Paris, was not replaced. Very soon, certain German professors took the initiative of establishing philological‐pedagogical seminars to fill the gap. However, these seminars did not survive the chaos of the Belgian revolution and it took almost 20 years before teacher training courses were reintroduced in separate colleges attached to the universities. At first, the teachers’ college in Liège considered itself a counterpart of the famous Ecole normale supérieure de Paris and many practical rules were copied from the French example to create a similar atmosphere. However, from the 1860s, many professors made efforts to revive the German tradition of philological‐pedagogical seminars. The ultimate aim was to achieve a (Belgian) compromise between French vocational training at a separate teachers’ college and German scientific education at the university. Nevertheless, the college became increasingly criticised for being in two minds without anything to go on to. Moreover, from the start, teacher training also became involved in the ideological conflict between Catholics and liberals and in the language question between French and Dutch speakers. In both matters another compromise had to be reached. The increasing importance of a scientific education for future teachers led to the ending of teachers’ colleges and, to a certain extent, even of teacher training itself, through its transfer to the universities. From 1890, new teachers had to become scientists at the expense of pedagogical training. Through comparisons with the situation in neighbouring countries, the development in Belgium is put in a broader perspective.

Caught between Law and Practice: Migrants and Settlement Legislation in the Southern Low Countries in a Comparative Perspective, c. 1700–1900

AbstractHistoriographical debates on the causes and implications of early modern and early industrial settlement legislation, which determined the locality where one could apply for poor relief, have so far focused mainly on England and Wales. These regions are deemed exceptional for the national character and universality of their Poor Laws (1601), associated Act of Settlement (1662) and later amendments. However, if the focus is shifted from the national legislative framework to actual practice, several continental regions had relief and settlement arrangements that bore many resemblances to those in England and Wales. This article draws on existing literature and archival research to explore the evolution of settlement law and practice in the Southern Netherlands, i.e. present-day Belgium, from the seventeenth to the late nineteenth centuries, and compares its main features with the situation in England and Wales. This comparative exercise brings to the fore a number of striking resemblances and remarkable differences, which question the precise nature of the British exception. While further research is needed to gauge fully the causes and consequences of the observed similarities and differences, this article aims to demonstrate how a comparative approach towards issues of settlement and relief not only elucidates our understanding of the particularities and generalities of the English/Welsh case, but also widens our insight into the social, economic, and cultural implications of settlement arrangements in general.

Burghers, Orangists and ‘good government’: Popular Political Opposition during the ‘Year of Disaster’ 1672 in Dutch Pamphlets

'Who ever lived in more remarkable times? When were there ever days with as much change as ours?' wrote a Dutch pamphleteer in September 1672.1 His question was right on the mark during the fall of the so-called 'Year of Disaster' of the Dutch Republic. Ever since the winter of 1671, when diplomatic language between France and the Dutch Republic had become increasingly belligerent and Louis XIV had gathered his armies in the Southern Netherlands, it had been clear to most Dutchmen that war was inevitable.2 The inadequate defence of the Republic became the subject of a heated debate. In an attempt to appoint the prince of Orange (who had been excluded from politics during the 1650s and 1660s) to the office of leader of the army and fleet, oppositional propagandists appealed to an anonymous audience by publishing scores of pamphlets. These Orangist publicists were successful in their primary goal. Under severe popular pressure, the prince of Orange was inaugurated as captain-general and admiral-general in February 1672. After the enemy armies of France, Munster and Cologne had entered the Dutch Republic in June and occupied three of the seven provinces within weeks, members of this anonymous public, most notably Dutch citizens from the remaining provinces of Holland and Zeeland, started to riot against certain magistrates that had been considered responsible for the terrible predicament that the Dutch Republic was in. As a consequence, government collapsed. Citizens attacked regents3 on the streets and pillaged their houses. On 12 June the first regent's house was plundered in Haarlem because this particular governor was believed to have supported negotiations with France. The regents Sijms and Langewagen were molested in Hoorn one week later, because they were suspected of financial corruption. On 25 June plundering had begun in Rotterdam and subsequently spread throughout the entire province of Holland and Zeeland. Eventually all large cities saw revolts against regents.4 During the summer months, from June until August, pamphleteers from different political persuasions shared several goals. The prince of Orange was to be appointed to another important political office and several suspected governors were to be removed from office. At the beginning of July, the first goal was achieved when William III was appointed to the office of Stadholder. The removal of suspected governors, however, led to a schism between two important oppositional groups. Orangist pamphleteers were out to discredit certain particular regents, most notably Johan and Cornelis de Witt who were subsequently brutally murdered by a large group of citizens in The Hague on 20 August. Their bodies were mutilated. Their toes, fingers, nose and ears were cut off; their hearts were cut out of their bodies.5 After the gruesome murder of these two men, however, Orangist publicists propagated the installation of a 'renewed obedience' between governors and governed. Six days after the murders, William III had been given the authority to change the governments in the riotous cities in order to 'restore the peace'. Citizens, on the other hand, started to file petitions and published radical pamphlets, demanding a purification of government based on issues of capability and good government. In some cities, peace and calm did not return until 1673.6So far, these dramatic events have not been explained satisfactory on all accounts because historians have overlooked, or even willingly neglected, the role that citizens have played in urban riots and the murders of the De Witt brothers. These citizens were called 'burghers' by Dutch contemporaries. 7 A burgher was not a patrician or a nobleman, nor was he a peasant or an outlaw, but it would be wrong to equate burghers with all citizens. Although all burghers were inhabitants of cities, not all inhabitants of cities were burghers. A burgher had privileges on which he swore an oath to the mayor and was as a consequence elevated above citizens without these special rights. …