Wim van Hoorn

Bust Prof. Dr. Martinus Cobbenhagen (1956, bronze)

Wim van Hoorn - Buste prof. dr. Martinus Cobbenhagen (1956, brons)

The bust of Martinus Cobbenhagen was made in 1956, two years after his death. It is a classical, realistic sculpture, made by the Limburg-born Van Hoorn (1908-1979). He studied sculpture at the Rijksakademie van beeldende kunsten in Amsterdam (1935-1938) and was a member of the Dutch Circle of Sculptors. After the Second World War, he made some war monuments, but mainly religious art for the Roman Catholic Church, including statues of saints and wall reliefs.

Martinus Cobbenhagen was a Professor of Economics, a priest, and Rector Magnificus several times. He is considered the founding father of Tilburg University, mainly because he wrote the curriculum in 1926. It focused on the relationship between economics and ethics. Moreover, Cobbenhagen attached importance to a broad understanding of the concept of economics, in which he considered knowledge of law and the social sciences indispensable.

Cobbenhagen saw the university as a community of lecturers, students, and graduates and for that reason played a major role in various networks. He died suddenly in 1954, at the age of 61.

More about history and academic heritage

The Tilburg University academic heritage is a very diverse set of archives, visual materials, collections, devices, recorded stories, et cetera that relate to the history of the university.