The Miniaturist opens in 1686, during the Dutch Golden Age. From 1609 to 1713, the Netherlands enjoyed economic and cultural prosperity, becoming one of the most powerful nations in the world.

Dutch affluence was largely created by the country’s relationship with water. Its capital, Amsterdam, was named for a dam built there in the 13th century. In the 17th century, the Dutch again harnessed water’s potential by building a canal network. The canals led to wealth, connecting Amsterdam to the North Sea and, thus, the rest of the world. Ships from the Dutch East India Company (known as the VOC) and the West India Company sailed as far as Africa, Asia, and America, establishing trade with these regions. Dutch merchants returned from their journeys with luxury goods such as spices. They also became enslavers, abducting Africans and trafficking them across the Atlantic or to plantations in Dutch Guiana.

The economic power of the Netherlands led to the establishment of a Dutch Empire, largely in the East Indies. The main source of sugar was the Dutch colony of Surinam (the English spelling changed to Suriname in January 1978). The Netherlands supplied over half of Europe’s sugar during this period and established many sugar refineries in Amsterdam.