Rattles, Toys and Miniature Artefacts Archaeological Insights into Childhood and Children’s Identities at Vlooienburg, Amsterdam ca. 1600‐1800

Archaeological excavations of more than 100 cesspits in the Vlooienburg neighbourhood in Amsterdam in 1980-81 produced several find assemblages, containing significant amounts of objects which can be related to childhood. Miniature artefacts, gaming pieces, toys, rattles and other finds that were recovered from the site help us to shed light on the position of children and the processes of their socialization within the Vlooienburg community between ca. 1600 and 1800. The first goal of this paper is to disclose the child-related archaeological data from Vlooienburg in order to contribute to the archaeological and historical study of children’s identities in the past. The second goal is to enrich our understanding of the care for children in the 17th and 18th century. In order to do so, this paper will first discuss the artefacts related to babies and toddlers, followed by the investigation of toys and play time for children of an older age. A specific element within the analysis of the toys will be the study of the many miniature artefacts that were uncovered during the Vlooienburg excavations. They make up a significant part of this study due to their role in children’s games, in which daily adult life and routine was mimicked by children, encouraging their socio-cultural development.