JB 2025 (art) – Frederik Hendrik – en Amalia van Solms pijpen

Author: Bert van de Lingen

Jaarboek PKN, Stichting voor onderzoek historische kleipijpen, 2025

Summary

For many years, clay pipes depicting Frederik Hendrik and Amalia of Solms were believed to have been produced to commemorate their marriage in 1625. The recent discovery of a nearly complete pipe dated 1633 challenges this assumption and points to a different historical context for their production. This find allows a small, distinctive group of richly decorated so-called Baroque and Jonah pipes, marked with a stamped rose, to be attributed to the workshop of the little-known pipe maker Pieter Sijmonsz de Licht, who Latinised his name as Per de Licht or Lichtius. Like Baroque and Jonah pipes, De Licht’s pipes are often found in military and maritime settings, suggesting their popularity among soldiers and sailors. This article brings together known examples of his work, places them within a broader historical framework, and offers new insights into both the maker and the motivations behind the dated production of these pipes.