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Wenceslaus Hollar

Fireworks at Hemissem

c. 1650
Etching on ivory laid paper
24.9 × 41.4 cm (9.8 × 16.3 in)

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In the collection of Art Institute of Chicago, Chicago · as of July 2026

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FROM THE ART INSTITUTE OF CHICAGO’S CATALOG

Wenceslaus Hollar’s nocturnal scene of innovative pyrotechnics vividly marks the culmination of a series of four prints depicting triumphal processions and other festivities held for the Imperial Postmaster General of the Holy Roman Emperor, the Count of Thurn and Taxis, and his wife on their visit to Hemissem, the home of Alexander Roelants, Postmaster General of the Netherlands.

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