uitnoodiging tot bijwoning van de feestelijke samenkomst . . . (Piet Zwart)

This is an invitation to attend a festive gathering on the occasion of the awarding of the honorary doctorate in Letters and Philosophy to H.R.H Princess Juliana (of the Netherlands) by Leiden University. Alas, you missed the event. It took place in 1930. But what’s timeless is this design by Piet Zwart. A rare item that hits all the marks of Dutch modernism—and it was made by Zwart the year before he put Juliana’s mum on a postage stamp, the first ever to incorporate photography. Who do you think was more proud? Juliana for getting a PhD or Wilhelmina for being the first to have her photographic portrait on a stamp?