Two Tax-Gatherers

The papers in this room belong to a real town. The ledger sets out seven months of income for Reymerswale in Zeeland, and on the shelf lies a deed issued in 1515 by two of its aldermen. One of them, Cornelis Danielsz, was known for corrupt dealings, and in 1516 his brother-in-law bribed his way into the office of burgomaster. Tax collectors were paid a percentage of what they gathered, and these two may even be caricatures of local officials. Their hats were already old-fashioned, cut into ragged strips in a style of about a century earlier, and the writer's red hat has faded to pink. This panel is a workshop copy of the original by Marinus van Reymerswaele in the Louvre. In the 17th century the town itself disappeared under the waters of the Eastern Scheldt.