The interior of the Cape House, 1670-1714

Abstract

This dissertation reconstructs, wherever possible, the interior of the Cape house between 1670 and 1714 from the evidence preserved in surviving inventories and vendu rolls located in the Cape Archives. Chapter I examines those inventories which contribute something to our knowledge of the architecture of the period. Chapter II reconstructs certain features of doors, windows, fireplaces etc., from clues in the inventories and vendu rolls. Chapter III considers the way the different rooms in a cape house were furnished, and relates this to the developments in interior organisation and design that were taking place in seventeenth-century Europe in general and the Hague in particular. Chapter IV examines beds, window curtains, seat furniture, footstools, footwarmers and screens. Chapter V examines tables, carpets, chests, coffers, cupboards, cabinets, writing boxes, cellarets, mirrors, pictures, and wall racks. Chapter VI deals with lighting equipment, aids to cleanliness, basketware, skins, leatherware and cooperage. Chapter VII examines the various items devoted to eating and drinking. Chapter VIII covers the domestic pursuits: smoking, reading, writing, sewing, knitting, spinning, music, indoor games, clocks, watches, scientific instruments, weapons and domestic pets. The Conclusion attempts to place the domestic world at the Cape in the context of contemporary Dutch culture. Comparisons are drawn between the Cape and other Dutch societies, and particularly between the Cape inventories and those of the Hague and New York, in order to pinpoint those qualities and features which are unique to the Cape house and the people who lived in it.