Introduction

This explicit poetic description of Artis by a board member leaves little to the imagination. Science, art, animals, shipbuilding, navigation, and commerce join together at the zoological garden that honors, and is honored by, the patroness of Amsterdam (Illustration 8). The poem, in essence, pays tribute to the enterprising Dutch who shared their personal wealth when supporting the Amsterdam zoological institution. Artis, in turn, became a cultural center for the city, and a source of civic pride.

The Dutch defined a new national cultural identity after years of French rule that ended in 1813 and the economic recovery that was a result of the reconstructed colonial trade. In the first half of the nineteenth century, the new elite that earned fortunes in commerce also developed a sense of civic responsibility and felt compelled to breathe vitality into Dutch culture that, during this period, had been characterized as “lifeless.” Like their counterparts across Europe, the Amsterdam burghers aspired to create new significant cultural institutions and to reshape Amsterdam's cultural life. Artis is the foremost example of their success in the middle decades of the nine-teenth century. It generated more enthusiasm and capital than, for example, the modest national art museum, the Rijksmuseum, that housed numerous Dutch Masters.