Portrait of Jonas Witsen
In 1702 Jonas Witsen became the owner of the Waterland, Surimombo and Palmeneribo Plantations in Suriname. They were the lucrative legacy of his wife Sara Scharphuijzen, who died in childbirth. Witsen had never been to Suriname nor did he have any intention of ever going. While he did not know the enslaved men, women and children personally, the measures he took in Amsterdam directly impacted their lives.