Archive Cabinet

Batavia, 1747–1748
Teakwood, carved details

This monumental cabinet once stood in the Raad van Justitie (Council of Justice) of Batavia, where colonial judges deliberated over matters of law and governance. Commissioned in 1747 after the Council complained of lacking proper space for archives and a library, it was completed the following year- crafted from solid teak and richly carved.

 

On its upper corners stand two allegorical figures: the Goddess of Justice, once holding a sword and scales, and the Goddess of Truth, depicted with a mirror and a serpent. Between them are fourteen family crests representing members of the Council, including its president, Reinier Stapel.

 

A silent witness to Batavia’s judicial system, the cabinet later entered the collection of the Royal Batavian Society of Arts and Sciences (KBG) and became part of the Jakarta History Museum in 1970. Today, it embodies the layered legacy of law, power, and craftsmanship in colonial Batavia.

MSJ 77:167/ML/MSJ; MSJ 2008:4 ML MSJ 2008; MSJ 2008:4 LA MSJ 2008