Vintage 1940s Dutch Batavia Indonesia Autograph Album Poesiealbum Art Drawings

This is an original vintage 1940s Dutch colonial friendship / autograph album (Poesiealbum) kept by a girl named Eusje, originating from Batavia, Dutch East Indies (modern-day Jakarta, Indonesia) with entries dating from 1943 to 1948 (spanning WWII and the Indonesian National Revolution).

Through amateur LLM research, it seems this book may have belonged to Eugenie Victorine Merghart, who was born in Batavia, later immigrated to the Netherlands after Indonesian independence and then ultimately ended up in Massachusetts after emigrating from the Netherlands.

Bound in striking purple-and-white mottled patterned cloth, this personal keepsake contains beautiful hand-drawn, original artwork alongside handwritten Dutch poems, verses, and heartfelt dedications ("Ter herinnering aan..."). Highlights include:

• Full-color and colored-pencil floral bouquets (wild roses, violets, sunflowers).

• Hand-drawn 1940s female fashion portraits and pin-up style illustrations.

• A tipped-in 1943 fantasy fairy woodland etching/print signed eigen druk.

• An illustrated tropical coastal landscape inscribed "Zeezicht - Batavia 11 Februari 1948".

Condition is good vintage; binding remains intact with typical spine wear and edge bumping to the covers. Interior pages show light age toning, minor handling wear, and loose/separated gutters at a couple of signatures, but all illustrations and calligraphic ink inscriptions remain bold, bright, and legible.

There are unpictured pages with poetry and artwork. Book is about 9 inches tall. Refer to the photos for a better idea of the style, condition and type of entries, you will receive the exact journal that is pictured.