Album amicorum of Jacoba Cornelia Bolten

From men's to women's business

The 18th-century album was primarily a men's business. They were mostly bound in beautifully stamped morocco oblong books (horizontal format books), filled by fellow students with quotes and wishes in Latin. Illustrations were relatively rare. The 19th-century album, on the other hand, is primarily a women's business. It is usually a small box in the form of a book in which family members and acquaintances have written verses and wishes in Dutch, French and German on loose sheets. In addition, it contains all kinds of examples of handicraft: embroidery, pinwork, drawings, watercolours, braiding of human hair and much more.

The male students haughtily turned away from the album during that period. The album of Jacoba Cornelia Bolten marks the transition. The outward appearance is still typically 18th century, but it is already loose-leaf, the contributors are no longer students and it is lavishly illustrated.

Genealogical research

Research in genealogical literature shows that the occurrence of certain family names in the album can be traced back to mutual marriages. For example, the Boltens were related to the Van Driest family through the marriage of Catharina Elisabeth Bolten (1785-1849) with Paulus Johannes van Driest (1778-1834), and the marriage of Maria Petronella Bolten (1789-1850) with Paulus Wijnandus van Driest (1786-1835).

Via Van Driest there is a line to the Kleinpenning family through the marriage of Catharina Paulina van Driest (1798-1856) with Johannes Stephanus Kleinpenning (1796-1864), and to the De Man family through the marriage of Agneta Lucretia van Driest (1785-1821) with Engelbert de Man (1777-1844).

Stray leaves of Paulina van Driest

It is remarkable that a few leaves from another album have also ended up in the cover. This is the album of Paulina Catharina Agneta van Driest (1823-1867), a daughter of Maria Petronella van Driest-Bolten. She received it – according to the inscription on fol. 44r from her mother as a gift – but possibly never got around to collecting them in practice, after which the pages were stored in her aunt's album.

Occasional poems by 'J.B.'

The copies of eleven occasional poems by 'J.B.', presumably the owner of the album J.C. Bolten, are curious. Without a doubt, this is a meager remainder of an immense mountain of poems, because anyone who takes in the contents will understand that nothing could happen in the family and friends' circles without Aunt Bolten shedding light on it in a poetic way. 

Description of the album

You can find the album in the KB catalogue under the request number KW 79 L 40. 

The formal description reads: "Album amicorum of Jacoba Cornelia Bolten (1787-1859). 41 contributions in Dutch and French by family members and acquaintances, placed in the years 1805-1843 in Amsterdam, Utrecht, Breukelen and Weesp. Also contains a number of pages with 11 copies of poems written by Bolten and 3 pages intended for the album amicorum of Paulina Catharina Agneta van Driest (1823-1867)
Paper, 75 loose fol., of which 15 unwritten, 100x169 mm.
Contemporary red morocco cover with gold stamping and centrally on the front and back cover an oval in green leather with ‘J.C. Bolten’ and ‘Souvenir de l’amitié’ respectively. Loose cover pages. Gilded edges. With contemporary green cardboard tube. With 13 brush drawings, 1 of which is cut and ‘pullable’, 3 engravings, 2 dried leaves and 2 pencil drawings.
Origin: donated in 2007 by J. Post, P. Post, J. Braat and S. Campbell-Braat from the estate of M.E. Post."

Index of authors of contributions

1. Bolten, Coo - fol. 48v
2. Bolten, Jacoba Cornelia (1787-1859) - fol. 48r, fol. 48v, fol. 49r, fol. 49v, fol. 50r-v, fol. 51r-v, fol. 52r-v, fol. 53r-v, fol. 54r-v, fol. 55r-v, fol. 56r-v
3. Bolten, Maria Petronella (1789-1850), echtgenote van Paulus Wijnandus van Driest - fol. 44r
4. Bolten, Willem Anthony (1784-1854) - fol. 8r
5. Bolten - see: Boursse
6. Boursse, Johanna Maria (1757-), echtgenote van Pieter Bolten (1747-1806) - fol. 2r
7. Brak, Abraham - fol. 49r
8. Broekhuizen, F. - fol. 48r
9. Brouwer, H.M. - fol. 21r
10. Brouwer, W.E. - fol. 9r
11. Bruin, D. de - fol. 33r, fol. 41r
12. Driest, Johanna Elisabeth van (1809-1846) - fol. 42r-v
13. Driest, Paulina Catharina Agneta van (1823-1867) - fol. 44r, fol. 46r, fol. 47r-v
14. Driest, Paulus Eliza van (1811-1847) - fol. 43r, fol. 47r-v
15. Driest, Paulus Wijnandus van (1786-1835) - fol. 4r
16. Driest, van - see: Bolten
17. Comman, Barend (1753-1830) - fol. 11r
18. Feith, Arnoldina Johanna Jacoba (1782-1816) - fol. 23r
19. Feith, Berendina Wilhelmina (1785-1824) - fol. 24r
20. Feith, Cornelia Charlotte Florentina (1783-1848) - fol. 25r
21. Haan Hugenholtz, Anna Catharina Arnolda de (1787-1848) - fol. 10r
22. Haan Hugenholtz, Clara Sophia de (1789-1844) - fol. 7r
23. Haan Hugenholtz, Catharina Elisabeth (1783-1863) - fol. 6r
24. Haan Hugenholtz, E.C. de - fol. 6r
25. Haan Hugenholtz, Isaäc Theodorus de (1784-1812) - fol. 3r
26. Hoffmann, Adriaan - fol. 40r
27. Honken, E.E. - fol. 34r
28. Honken, J.C. - fol. 19r-v
29. Honken, S.M. - fol. 31r
30. Kleinpenning, A.B. - fol. 56r-v
31. Kleinpenning, A.H. - fol. 48r, fol. 49v
32. Kleinpenning, Elisabeth Lucretia (1785-1866), echtgenote van Nicolaas Tetterode - fol. 51r-v, fol. 52r-v, fol. 54r-v
33. Kleinpenning, Johanna Wijva - fol. 56r-v
34. Lijnen, C.P. - fol. 29r
35. Man, C. de - fol. 5r
36. Man, Engelbert de (1777-1844) - fol. 37r
37. Nagel, A. - fol. 30r
38. Nagel, W. - fol. 28r
39. N.N. - fol. 14r, fol. 15r, fol. 58r, fol. 59r
40. Olivier Boddens, C.L. - fol. 22r
41. Oudart, Félix - fol. 58r
42. Pré, S.W. du - fol. 38r, fol. 60r
43. Pré, Willem du [(1792-1859)?] - fol. 16r
44. Rossum, E. van - fol. 39r
45. Rossum, E.M. van - fol. 1r
46. Rouwenhorst, M. - fol. 18r
47. Schipper, Jan - fol. 17r
48. Sethe, M.C. - fol. 20r
49. Smit, Jannetje (1783-1849), spouse of Bruno Tideman - fol. 26r-v
50. Stoll, C.F.F. - fol. 35r
51. Stouw - fol. 15r
52. Tetterode, Hester Cornelia (1780-1825) - fol. 53r-v
53. Tetterode - see: Kleinpenning
54. Tideman, Bruno (1784-1844) - fol. 26r-v
55. Tideman - see: Smit
56. Vianen Nagel, Sara Engelina van (1794-1831) - fol. 27r-v
57. Wit, A.M.E. de - fol. 12v, fol. 13r
58. Zielkens, Christina Berendina - fol. 36r