Foundation Musick's MonumentCollectie Overijssel document inv. nr. NL-ZICO 0058.2. Dossier 475
THE SEALED DOCUMENT
Hasselt city seal with Saint Stephen, coat of arms and cannonballs
St Stephen was the patron saint of Hasselt, which is why he came to function as a shield bearer in the coat of arms. From the 17th century until the French Period, the saint was not next to, but directly behind the coat of arms.
Drawing of the Stefanus Church Hasselt after lightning struck the tower.
The seal of the city of Hasselt with the swans.
VIDEO
A bill with wax seals
Henk Poelarends
On 30 April 2024, iat Collection Overijssel, a document in inv. no NL-ZICO 0058.2. File 475 opened on which four wax seals were cut. What is the story behind this?
The ‘secret’ behind the sealed document.
A reconstruction
Henk Poelarends
The sealed document contains a 28-page notebook by Isaak de Vos, and concerns the accounts of purchases in Den Helder. The notebook is about the year 1728.
Somehow, Abraham Amthuijzen got hold of this notebook. Abraham was born in Amsterdam, his father having a grocery shop there. Abraham is an only child, inherits after the death of his parents all their Amsterdam property including houses that are also rented out.
In 1740, he moved to Hasselt and came to live on the Gracht with his wife. 
Their daughter is called Alberdina Isabella born 20 February 1760 
Alberdina Isabella married 15 September 1776 
Amthuizen is a painter / glazier and also does work in Dulcken's house. He befriends Dulcken and regularly lends him money and goods. He records his activities in a notebook. In 1769, he used Isaak de Vos's notebook, which still has a few blank pages at the back. The list of activities also includes Dulcken. Amthuizen probably went regularly to Amsterdam, where he had possessions. When a woman from Hasselt asks him to bring a letter for her husband in Amsterdam, he has it written down in the back of his notebook.
Meanwhile, Amthuizen also carried out work for Dulcken in 1770 and 1771. Amthuizen regularly asks Dulcken to repay his loans. Dulcken does not.
Things changed when Amthuizen hired a lawyer at the end of 1771, who immediately took action and tried to seize Dulcken's harpsichords. Thus begins the litigation between Amthuizen and Dulcken. (475)
The process
In addition to repaying the loans, Amthuizen says Dulcken still has to pay for the painting work of 1770 and 1771. Dulcken accuses Amthuizen of never submitting an invoice.
Lawyer Waterham asks Amthuizen to prepare an account. He does so in the booklet he also uses for the statement of works. There is still a blank page in there. He takes this to the town hall on 10 March 1772 and presents the bill. D'Ameras puts his signature on it and accepts it as a procedural document. But at the City Court, they have no use for the rest of the document/ notebook. So they fold the notebook so that only the bill can be seen. The rest disappears behind a few seals so there can be no confusion. Therefore, the contents of the notebook, including the letter from the worried mother, are completely uninteresting to the trial between Amthuizen and Dulcken. It is only about the front of the bundle.
Copies of the account are also made later e.g. for a lawyer. It can also be found in this inventory number.
Why did they not tear out the account? They probably assumed that Dulcken would pay the bill quickly. With that, a lawsuit would never have arisen and neither would inventory number 475. The case would only have been recorded in the book of daily proceedings of the Hasselt Municipal Court.
But Dulcken did not pay. Thus, the seal remained and Amthuizen did not get his notebook back. When Dulcken left for Antwerp in 1776, the file was closed. Until 2024, when the seals were broken on 30 April.
Hasselt 2 May 2024.
ACCOUNTING FEBRUARY 1769 WITHIN SEALED DOCUMENT
Between March 1772 and July 1772, the so-called Schuldboek plays a role in the process between Amthuijzen and Dulcken. This can be traced in the Acts of the Hasselt Municipal Court: pages 253 to 256. When the sealing takes place is not clear..
toegangsnummer 0058.1 inventarisnummer 3172-0253-0254-0255
NL-ZIHCO toegangsnummer 0058.1 inventarisnummer 3127 bladzijde nummer 0253
NL-ZIHCO toegangsnummer 0058.1 inventarisnummer 3127 bladzijde nummer 0254
NL-ZIHCO toegangsnummer 0058.1 inventarisnummer 3127 bladzijde nummer 0255
TESTAMENT AMTHUIZEN
Hasselt Den 24 mey
Seer geagte en lieve man ik hebbe met lang wagten en groote droefheyt u brief met tranen in myn ogen gelesen dat ons soon schelm bedroogen heeft wat raat nu ik en weet geen raat als gij daar blijft dan kan my Mansvelt (HERBERGIER) niets doen maar de wit moest Mansvelt schrijven dat hy u nog geen gelt kon geven dat hy u wat uytstel gaf soo er dan geen gelt en qwam wilt ik geen beter raat als dat gy daar een keldertje huerde dat wy daar wat garen en hut besems en het en het sysem? en soo wat biksteen soas wat meer dat wy maar uyt dat gat quamen soo hy u dan geen gelt en gaf dat gy dan met een brief buyten myn weten aan Mansvelt schreef dat gy hem met porselein sou betalen dat hy dat met u vinden most maar dat moest gy niet eer doen of ik en het kint moest eerst by u wesen wat belooft u de wit of wat segt hy hoe hy het met u maken wil en laat u dore de ken weer geven en gebruykt geen vuyle woorden tegen hem daar hy u geen ache? mee an kan doen god helbt ons in desen noot want ik en sie daar geen gat duer maar wy sullen ons daar in moeten troosten tot beter uyt komst
Dear father bly stay there anyway because I want to live liver in Amsterdam as here in this nassaret
Translation:
Hasselt, 24 May
Dear and dear man,
I have waited a long time for your letter and read it with great sadness and tears in my eyes and understand that this knave has deceived us.
I do not know what to do.
When you stay there, Mansvelt cannot do anything to me. De Wit should write Mansvelt that de Wit could not give you money yet and that Mansvelt should give you some respite.
But if no money comes from De Wit, I know of no better advice than that you rent a cellar there and we will sell yarns, brooms, bricks, etc.We will sell them. If only we can get out of this hole.
If De Wit does not give you money, you must write a letter, unbeknownst to me, to Mansvelt that you will pay him with china and that he should settle for that. But you must not do that until I and the child are with you.
What does De Wit promise you, what does he say about the way he wants to settle it with you? Be reasonable to him and do not use mean words against him, because he cannot do us any more harm.
Let God help us in this distress because I don't see any more hole in it. We will have to cling to that until our condition improves.
Dear father stay there anyway, because I would rather live in Amsterdam than in this (hole) Nazareth
Supposed context:
Letter sent by A's wife, with a sentence added by the son.
Family A lives in Hasselt.
A has a debt with Mansvelt. This one lives in Hasselt.
Father has fled Hasselt and lives in Amsterdam. Mother A is unresponsive to her husband's debts.
De Wit has to pay money to A.
De Wit is the knave who cheated A's family. Yet De Wit should mediate with Mansvelt.
Mother A would rather go live in Amsterdam in a basement flat and sell all sorts of things than stay in Hasselt any longer.
Perhaps Mansvelt will settle for porcelain instead of money.
When De Wit wants to make amends, control yourself. Even though he is a knave he can no longer harm us.
Son A would love to get out of Hasselt ( Nazareth is a swear name for Hasselt)