Hollands meisje aan het ontbijt

A young woman, the painter’s wife, drinks coffee, a popular beverage in the 18th century. In 1775, the magazine De Vaderlander called (in vain) for a coffee boycott: ‘Unfortunate calloused fists had to work the ground for the coffee and sugar that you now hold in your delicate little hands. They were murdered to meet your needs.’