Introduction

This introduction presents an overview of the key concepts discussed in the subsequent chapters of this book. The book provides a close analysis of Hieronymus Cock's role in conceptualizing and producing the Small Landscapes prints. The Small Landscapes demonstrate the links between printed visual imagery and social and economic practice, as they both responded to and helped to shape contemporary urban relationships with the local countryside. Following the Small Landscapes to Holland, the book explores how the prints engaged with the complex and intertwined social, political, and artistic contests over the status and future of the Netherlands. It explores the ongoing efficacy of the Small Landscapes once they were republished in Antwerp by Philips Galle in 1601 and his son Theodoor Galle some years later. The book deals with the Small Landscapes within Cock's larger production of landscape prints, highlighting how the unique content and composition of the Small Landscapes relate to Cock's other landscape projects.