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PREFACE g

Thb enttence of a book like SudnrtTt Tttmdki
yikademie made it possible for me to cany out
the present volume on the lines mapped out for
the whole series. Sandrart, however, is no Vasari,
and it would not have been advisable merely to
furnish a transbitiop of Sandrart almie. After
once having given the reader an imprcMioa of
yuasi contemporary criticism as it ii to be found
in Sandrart, I have considered it necettary, in
most cases, to add such facts and corrections as
had been left for later ages to discover. But
although Sandrart, the main source of the pre-
sent book, lived man tlum a hundred years after
the great epoch of German art, hia aocounts
may be accepted as in a wty contemponury.
For he always endeavoured, and was sometimes
able, to interview old men whose teachers had
seen and spoken with the great artbts, and
whose vivacious accounts Sandrart thus had by
word of mouth.

The phm of the book has imposed ratrictioiis
upon the present writer. If minw men are

vi PREFACE

ited more at length than some artim of prime

I impCHStince, it b, of course, merely because the
" sources " contained more information about the
one class than about the other. It is necessary
to call to mind the title of the volume, which
runs, " Stories of the German Artists," and not
"Hirtory of German Art."

ILLUSTRATIONS

COLOURED PLATES

The AMBASSADoits 0«m tkt ptdtaing by

Holbein in the NaHmnt GaJkry) . .fhntispita

The Holv Family (Jhm the pmMttg by

Martin SckMgamir at Vunna) . .7b faa 40

Portrait of the Emperor Maximilian
(Jnm the painting by Albreekt DUrtr at
VUmta) „ «4

Adoration of the Trinity {from the paitU*

ing by Albreekt DUrtr at yknna) ..,,91

The Conversion or St. Mauricb Ifivm tke

painting by AfiOtitiat GHImwaidatMumtk) „ laS

Head or St. Cathbrinb 0«m tkt painting

fy Zm(us CroHodk at Drtstbm) , . „ i6t

Portrait or the Duchess or Milan (Jrom
tke painting fy HoUftin in tke National
G*^) M set

ToBiT and the Axobl (Jrom Hk painting by

Adam EltMmir tm tiU NaOaimi GaUuy) „ •14

Cupid sharpenino his Arrow {from the
painting by Anion Raphael Mengs at
Dntien) »$*

X ILLUSTRATIONS

PLAIN PLATES

Maoonma in the Rose Bower. {S/epAtn

Zoekiter) .Ibfim i6

Madokwa with Violets. {Sl^hen Lotkmr) „ as

Christ on the Cross. {Mashr the Lift

of Mary) a4

The Descent from the Cross. {MasUr of

St. Bartholomew) i 34

Madonna in the Rose Bower. (Martin

SckMgauer) • 46

St. Eustace. {DUrtr) ,66

Adoration or the Magi. {Diirer) . . „ 68

Martyrdom of 10,000 Christians. {Diirer) „ 78

The Four Apostles. {Diirer) 104

PietA. {Hans Burgkmair) ,114

Susanna. {Aitdotfir) ,134

St. George amd the Dragon. {Aibbi^). „ 138

Portrait or Herz. (Ptna) • • . „ 146

The PRODiOAt SoM. {SOaU Bekam) . . „ ,54

The Rut on the Flight. {Zmcos Cranach) „ ,60

The Judgment or Paris. (Zkm* Cranaek) „ ,64

Portrait or Erasmus. {mtMn) ,„

ILLUSTRATIONS

xi

rAOB

The St. Sebastian Altar. {Holbein the

Elder)

To face 192

The Meyer Madonna. {Holbein)

f»

198

Jupiter and Mercury. {ElsArimer) .

»»

210

n

«3«

Portrait or the Artist. {Mengs) .

9>

248

Portrait of the Artist. (Ckoiemitdki)

274

Portrait of the Artist. {Anion Graff) .

II

304

STORIES OF
THE GERMAN ARTISTS

CHAPTER I

THE EARLY MASTERS OF THE SCHOOL
OF COLOGix'E

The historian of modern Italian art caii follow
his subject back as" far as the thirteenth century,
and in hi* resetrehes about its very Inrth he en-
counters definite personalities, names that have
the ring and touch of something real about them.
We possess a good deal of precise information
about Cimabue, for example, and can follow him
on his way from Florence to Rome and Assisi ;
pretty sure records of his birth and death, his
wwks and his pupils, have been handed down
to us. When we omie down to the next gene-
ration, we find very little that is haxy, or left
to conjecture only, about a man like Giotto di
Bondone.

How differently do nuitters lie as soon as we

2 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

croM the Alps and direct our researdi towards
the {vinutiye stages of German art! It is, of
course, scarcely a matter of surprise that here
every new departure should have occurred at
least a full century later. The art of the brush
is known to the true medieval ages only in two
forms — as practised by the illuminator of mantt-
scripts, ami, again, by the mural decorator. Each
c/i these practitioners was dependent, a minor
agent who scarcely could claim to be considered
the bearer of a separate and self-reliant art.
The independence of painting rested upon the
introduction of the easel picture, and this occurred
north of the Alps in the course of the fourteenth
century; but how alight was the reeogmtikm
achieved when the novelty had come ! No less
a man than Dante mentioned and celebrated
Cimabue. Who ever mentioned, let alone im-
mortalised, the painters of the Cologne School ?
It is an astonishing fact that from the earliest
times down to the bq;inning of the Mjcteeath
century the name cS only tn* ungle artist among
them all has been handed down to us in connec-
tion with his work, and even this we do not
owe to contemporary writers, but to a much
later man — a man, indeed, who was among the
first to claim for the artist that degree of atten-

THE EARLY MASTERS 3

tion and esteem whic'.i he has rince m> pkntifiilly
received — to Albiecht Dttrer.

There are many circumstances which apprise
us of the low estimation in which art was held
during the evanescence of the Middle Ages, but
none enAxcss the point ttpm us nith greater
effectiveness than this. Truly, indeed, the man
whom later ages, have looked up to almost as to
a special kind of being, and about whose work
more hubbub has been raised than about any
other profession almost, was then held for a mere
craftsman, an artisan like every one else. And
though he may have d<me as charming work as
he whom we now style Maater Wilhelm, or as
beautiful and important work as he whom we
now style the Master of the Ufe of the Viigin,
or as strangely uncommon and startling produc-
tions as the Master of the St. Thomas Altar-
piece, yet he was no more deemed worthy of
being cherished in the memwy of ages to come as
an individual than the good fellow who tf tlored
well-fitting clothes, or he who joined tables and
chairs well, or he who perhaps excelled as a
pastry-cook.

Knowing this to have been the condition of
affairs, we will not be surprised to learn that a
ttory of early German art must present an alto-

4 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

gether diflferent appearance from that of its
Italian counterpart. It is a difficult and, at the
very outset, not exactly a satisfactory thing, for
history to Ixigin with conjectures, intangible
things, and supposititious names. Until one or
two generstions the story of German trt
began virtually with the sixteenth-century men.
Recent research, labouring in the face of unpar-
alleled difficulties, has done much, miraculously
much, to throw a light upon the work and the
men prior to the year 1500. The Schoob cf
Tyrol, of Nuremberg, of Suabia, Switzerland, and
the Middle Rhine, have been investigated. Many
a separate persoiality begins to loom up out of
the haze in distinct and clear outlines — distinct
and clear as to everything except his name and
the facts of his life ; in other words, clear as to
his artistic intentions and achievements. But all
of this concerns as yet the special student «ily.
There are only two features or items pior to
Dttrer and his contemporaries which can claim
the interest of the general public so far — they
are Martin Schongauer and the School of Cologne.

The popularity of the School of Cologne is of
itself a proof of the fact that it is the most im-
portant school among the German Primitives. That
this should have cant to be the case is neither

THE EARLY MASTERS 5

a matter of chance nor one for wonder. Until
the year 1450 or thereabouts, Cologne was dis-
tinctly the metropolis of Germany. Its vicinity
to the Netherlands, the Burgundian realm, and
to France will have gone for much to effect this
end. Above all, its commanding ponttcm upon
the great thoroughfar , the Rlune, will have
gained for it a position which insured importance
and wealth. Though the fine arts were de-
spised, as we have seen, they were even at that
time a luxury, and they depended upon super-
fluity of money for their very existence then as
they do now. Cologne assumed at that early
age a posidon which y/r^ occufued much later by
a town that had in a stnular way become excep-
tiondly rich through commerce — I mean London.
It became the great attractor of talent ever since
it was become the great market. For, strange to
say, as far as we have been able to ascertain, not
one of the many masters that form the Sdiool
of Cologne — certainly none of the most impor-
tant ones — was a native <^ the town. The
earliest came from Suabia and the Upper Rhine ;
later ones from Westphalia, the Middle Rhine,
then from the Dutch and the Flemish Lowlands.
Each brought some home features with him, yet
each seems to have accommodated his style at

6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

once to the •pint that preTaUed at Cdogne; and
though we can trace their schooling every time,
we should never think of merely classing them
with the schools they originally came from. They
all have a distinct Cologne character, protean as
it is, about them. Thus we are, after aU,
very well justified in speaking of the School of
Colc^ne.

In pasung the prindpal members of the School
in review before the reader, there will be scarcely
any biographical facts to be submitted, and
scarcely more of contemporary or even early
notices. In the main the account will have to
consist of an enumeration of the principal works
of each artist, and a brief indication ci the pecu-
liarities of his style, to be left a» objectire as
posnble.

Master Wilhelm of Herle and Hermann Wyn-
rich of Wesel are the names of . o early painters
of Cologne that are met with in the records. In
the Chronicle of Limburg we find, sui mm
1380: "About this time there lived a painter
*t Cdogne, whose name was Wilhelm. He was
the best punter in all countries of the German
tongue, and he was esteemed by the masters, for
he painted every man of any kind, just as if he
were alive."

THE EARLY MASTERS 7

From Guild-books, and other contemporary
documents, we leam that there was a master
painter Wilhelm living at Coli^ne about that
time. His name was Wilhelm Ton Herle, and
he bought, with lua wife Jtttta» one of the hornet
opponte the Av^tine convent in the year 135I.
During the yean 1370 and 1 371 his name recurs
several times in connection with pecuniary trans-
actions, and he must by that time have been pretty
well off, for he buys annuities for himself and
his wife, the said Jutta. About thia time we
also find several records of paymoits to lum for
work executed on behalf of the city. Particularly
on the 14th of August 1370, he is paid mne
marks for illuminating the book in which oaths
were registered. This very frontispiece, however
— probably representing a "Crucifijdon" — has
been torn out of the book by scHiie ruthless hand,
which is exceedingly deplorable, since it would
be, if we still possessed it, at least one example
of this master's art, the authenticity of which
would be above suspicion. He is not mentioned
again before the year 1378, but this time as
having died, and the occasion refers to the dis-
posal of his property among his hdrs. It is
divided between hu widow Jutta and his sister
Christina, share and share alike. In the course

8 TORIES OP GERMAN ARTISTS
of YuioM tnnrfort it »pp«r» thrt pwently Jutte
invests pwt of the property again in an annuity,
and this annuity is registered in her favour and
in that of Hermann Wynrich of Wescl, Master
Wilhelm's principal scholar and prop of his
studio, whom, according to the guUd curtom of
the times, the widow Jutta bad mwried. In
August of the your 1378 ^ established each
othar as sole heirs in the case of cither's demise.
Purchases of annuities and of houses, some of
them effected in Jutta's name along with his
own, prove that Hermann thrived as a painter.
Jutta had died by midsummer 1395 ; she had
borne neither of her two husbwids any chadien.
Hermann was nurried a second time within two
years of his first wife's death. He i^osperad
and accumulated more wealth. He was chosen
into the Municipal Council in 1397, Hoo. H03.
1410, and 141 3, in which last-named year he
must have died, leaving a widow and foMT
children.

Such are the scanty records wWch hare been
handed down to us concerning the everyday
life of these men. It has become customary to
ascribe to the elder of the two a number of
paintings, clearly the best of the School, and
clearly by one and the same hand. The only

THE EARLY MASTERS 9

grounds for this were that it is natural to con-
nect the best work of the time with that name
whom contcmptMary accounts call the moat re-
nowned painter. Thus it happens that to this
day this set of pietores is asoribecl in gallery
caulogues to i ' ^ter Wilhdtai d Cologne.
Later criticism has sought to establish that the
paintings in question more likely belong to the
end of the century, that is, to a period subse-
quent to Master Wilhelm's death. Consequently
it is claimed that Hermann Wynrich of Wesel b
their author, if indeed they may be ssoibed to
either of the twa But even this b a matter of
conjecture.

The principal picture of the set, perhaps, u a
•'Madonna with the Pea-blossom" at the Cologne
Museum. It is a moderate-sized triptych, show-
ing in the centre the Madonna, a half-length,
holding a pea-bloswMn in her Wt hand, and
supporting the Christ-cWId on her right arm.
The child itself b almost naked, and it holds
a golden rosary in its left, while it rai.«s its
right hand to it3 mother's face. The interior
wings show St. Catherine and St. Barbara, the
exterior the : nocking of Christ. "The interior
panels are exquisitely finished, and the power
of coloration b equal to that of ml painting,

10 TORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

with «n extremely soft sfimuto. The type of
the heads displays a refined, longish oval, round
open eyes, a snwll mouth, and a long chin.
The draughtsmanship of the heads is by no
means correct, yet they display uncommon charm,
and the expression is one of unsullied simplicity
and purity."

In sweet chaste modesty the Viigin looks
down, as if some one had just exclaimed : Happy
mother!' and she had not found a word to
reply, flurried as she was with her secret joy.
The reply is contained in the gesture of the
Christ-child." There is an attempt to emphasize
the purely human element in the scoie, to
characterise the mutual love between mother and
child, and further, there lies the truly human
w(»ship of fair womankind embodied in the
painting. The mainspring of this work, and
all that are grouped with it, is a joyous but
peaceful youthfulness, a certain sanguine ardour
and admiration for loveliness. We scarcely ever
find any dramatic grasp, and the Wtter sides of
life do not seem to exist fcx thu master or these
masters, for even the solemn and tragic incidents
of the Passion are touched with a light hand that
desires not to harp upon what is saddening.
There is a similar picture at the Germanic

THE EARLY MASTERS ii

Museum in Nuremberg, not quite as fascinating
as the Cologne example, however, and the same
holds good of a "St. Veronica with the Sudarium,"
now in the Museum at Munich.

The largest and, from one point of view,
most important work of this group is a large
altar-piece now in a chapel of the cathedral at
Cologne, which was painted originally for the
Franciscan Nunnery dedicated to St. Clara. This
nunnery was founded at the beginning of the
fourteenth century, and soon became a sort of
place of refuge for the noblest dames and virgins
of Cologne and its vicinity. In the year 1327
certain nslics of St. Constance, St. Ursula, and
her martyrs were unearthed and housed here,
which gave additional splendour to the place.

The altar-piece is divided into twenty-four
compartments, separated by Gothic carvings, and
in them the life of the Saviour is told. It was
in its time an ideal representative of what paint-
ing originally purported to be, the literature of
the unlettered, a book of information for tho«
unable to read. Even a person of our own
time, contemplating this large altar-piece, will be
struck by a certain kind of vivacity that the
scenes display, almost as much as by the appar-
ent imperfections in drawing and limitations of

la STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
colouring, which are, of course, part and parcel
of the early period during which the pictures
were completed. There are little genre-traitt,
if one may call them so, to be detected m
almost every panel. The little Chritt-child
apparently enjoys its bath in M altogether human
manner, the contempUtion of which is likely to
(Ustract pious beholders, who look solely for
elevation. Again, when it is presented m the
temple, it gaily leaves the priest with the
swaddling clothes in his hand, and runs across
the altar-table to its mother. In short, every-
where there is some feature taken directly fifom
the life, more convincing and capthrating than
anything which merely originated in the imagina-
tion of some painter ever could be. It has been
conjectured with great plausibility that these and
similar scenes of the Passion and the Life of
our Saviour bear a distinct reUtion to the
common performances of mysteries and mi«d«
plays. These thow. were during the Middle
Ages even a more important fenture of daily
life than the theatre is to us nowadays, and it
is therefore only natural that they should have
exercised some influence upon the art of :he
times. Even such a creation as Schongaucrs
famous " Bearing of the Crosa" no douht rertt,

THE EARLY MASTERS 13
as ftr M the composition goes, upon some
representation that the artist had witnessed.
The sets of Passion pictures follow the arrange-
ment and order of the scenes in the mytteriw,
and it is a most naturml expltMtion of the
reaUstic features in the psintings, if we sgree
to deduce them from the reBgious stage repre-
sentations. They must have suggested many a
thing to the painter which he, during the mere
process of designing a bibLoal picture, would
never have hit upon.

Within the last year or two the paintings of
the group just discussed have been receiving
extraordinary attention at the hands of the
student. It has been discovered that at the
beginning of the nineteenth century these works
were sorely tampered with and extensively re-
painted. When these modem coatings were
removed from the panels of the St. Clara altar-
piece, quite a diflferent tend of type and draughts-
manship appeared. The main Unes of the design
remain the same, even after the removal of the
later repaintings, but the character of the work
corresponds more to what we would expect
of an earlier period, and so perhaps, after all,
we may be justified in looking upon Mtstmr
Wilhelm as the author

14 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Master Wynrich seems to have had no pupil
who carried on his style ; it was taken up about
a generation later by a stranger who came to
be the most important painter Cologne ever
possessed, and who wis clearly held fcr tnch
ahready early in the nxtr«mth century. On his
journey to the Netherlands DOrer passed through
Cologne, and there he enters a notice in his
diary such as does not reappear on any other
one of all its many pages : " Paid two white
pence for the unlocking of the altar-shrine which
Master Stephen painted at G)lc^ne.'' In those
days paintings were placed to be seen, not
ludden from view with the object of mulcting
the traveller for a tip. We may well conclude
that the picture must have been something quite
extraordinary to have been guarded like a
treasure which is too choice to be ordinarily on
view. To this notice of DOrer's we owe the
possiUUty of ascribing the painting, which was
kef^ in the chapel of the Town Hall, to a
known painter. Other authors, such as Georg
Braun in his " Description of Cologne," which
appeared in 1572, and Gelenius in his De
Magnitate Colonic (1645), testify to the regard
in which this work was held ; of all paint-
ings in the town they menttm only it, and

THE EARLY MASTERS 15

say that it is one of the treasures which artists
especially admire. One Quadt von Kinckelbach
published a book on the " Glory of the German
Nation" in 1609, and there we find a curious
passage relative to Diirer's teeing the pcture.
He writes: Nineteen years ago I wwked for
a goldsmith, who was an old, able artificer and
a man well versed in things. He told me about
a time when, as he understood from old, well-
informed people, Albrecht Diirer came, in pass-
ing down (the Kiv.ne), to an important and right
worthy city, which it is not opportune to name
this time, where, perhaps more out of sorvice
to (emperw) Manmilian than out of love of
art, a masterly and uncommonly beautiful piece
was shown him, and he was asked what he
thought of it. Albrecht Diirer was hardly able
to give utterance to his thoughts from wonder
and astonishment at what he saw. Whereupm
these men said to lum: 'This fellow died in a
hospital here ' (intending a hidden fling at DSrer,
as being one of those artists who seem to think
so mighty much of themselves, and yet do not
achieve more than wasting away in an alms-
house in the end). • Ah ! ' replied Diirer, ' be
sure to boast of that ; indeed, it will contribute
much to your honour that you ahould refer

i6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
dispwagingly, and even contemptuously, to this
man, who could have shed lustre upon your

very name.' "

From the arcluvcs of Cologne we have glettied
that Stephen Lochner, for this w«s his name,
bought a house in October 27th of the year
1442, along with his wife Lysbeth. Two years
later he sold it and bought a better one near
St. Alban's Church. But after that fortune
does not seem to favour him any longer; he
is compelled to mortgage his property in 1448-
He had attained the rights of dtiiensMp in the
previous year. If his worldly nShan did not
thrive, that did not injure his reputotion,
for in 1447 he was elected into the Council,
and a second time in the year 145°. ^^^^
Christmas time. Within the following twelve-
month he died. The plague wm raging at
Cologne at that time, more en>eci»Uy in the
quarter of the town in which he Uved. Possibly
it attacked him and he was transported to the
hospital. This would account for the jibe
about the hospital of the worthy councillors
whom Durer answered so pertinently. It »
highly probable that he had been ailing for
some time, and this would explain why, in sj^te
of the esteem which he met with, he wa« un»W«

THE EARLY MASTERS 17

to achieve a fortune. The conjecture as to his
illness is based upon a statement of his inalnlity
to travel, which is con^ned in a letter written
upon the i6th of August 145 1, by the Council of
Cologne to the Burgomaster at Meersburg on the
Bodensee. The gist of this interesting document,
shorn of its queer verbiage, is something like
this: "We, the Council of Cologne, send best
greetings to the Buigomaster and Council of
Meersbui^, wi^ung them everytlung good that
we can. Wise, honourable, and especially good
friends ! Our citizen. Master Stephen the painter
yclept Lochner, legitimate son of George Lochner
and Alheid Lochnerin of sacred memory, your
citizens deceased, has informed us that various
goods and property have descended upon him by
inheritence from his aforesaid parents in your
town, which he would like to claim, but begs
that grace nuy be granted lum, since he is not
yet able to go upon a journey. Therefore we
beg of your honours and your kindness that the
said inheritance, descending to him from the
aforesaid parents, may be kept undivided and
unmoved until the time, wUch shall be the very
earliest posnble, that he can travel and come
to claim it"
From tlus document we learn that Stephen's

,8 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Su.bUn tailing ««■» M««'™'8' 1^
Con.anc=. We m.y •!»
d«l of probability that h= d,=d co.nP«t.v^
young, seeing that his death occurrrf m *. «r)r
same year as that of his parent..

Stephen Lochner'. m«n crcfon, *«
Dolld." which ,<Mi.y form, - *
cipal masure. of the cathedral at Cologne.™
p.tat»l to order by him for the =tap^">f 'J^
?ow„H.n. This chapel «"
year H^6, and about this t.me Stcph'" ^
probably have completed h,s P-«7 J" **J
had to introduce all the elen«nt. of the legend
which acount. for »m. of the p-tron satnts of
,h. tow.. On Twelfth Night, in the year n68
the nobility in the neighbourhood of Co^p
coMpired with the Archbishop, and ventureda.
Zl upon the city at night whtle e.ery^
™ asleep. Thereupon there wa. . gr~«

;Crwhen.lo. a spectral army appeared u^
^e top of the walls of the town It was
Ursal ' with her eleven thousand vugms and the
Three Magi; the enemy fled before the appan-

THE EARLY MASTERS 19

non. The citizens, on their ^i, ''^""J?.^
seen distinctly how the assembled mnt» ble«ed

Bes!les these, St. Gereon and hi. t}.rc« hundred
knights are patron mnx» of Cologne wh«rea.
the chapel itself was dedicated to the Ho y
; Virgin. Lochner relegates the two samts witii
' thefr retinue to the wings, and introduces ^e
Magi as adoring the Mother and Child in the
i centre-piece. The shutters on the cmfide Aow
an " Annunciation." There is only one German
master of the fifteenth century who can show
up anything that will bear comparison with this
formidable and delicious altar-piece: it ts Martm
Schongauer. The happy observation has been
Imade that the two painters diverge upon the
matter of their conception of Mary. Schongauer
reveals to us, above all. the Mother of God;
Stephen Lochner. the Virgin. In the work of
Ithe one she betrays depth of feeling, greatness
lof soul destined to suffer and to bear up m
Igrief ; in the work of the other she is the demure,
esh, and innocent handmaid of God.
As such she reappears in a " Madonna with the
/iolet" (now in the Episcopal Museum at Cologne)
and in the exquisite '* Madonna with the Christ-
thild" in a rose arbour, attended by glorifying

-lb

20 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

angels, now in the Museum at Cologne. This
latter shows Lochner's brilliant — one may say,
sparkling — coloration to perfection. Up to now
the tendency of the School was towards a very
light, mild, roseate, as one might call it, scheme
of colours. Lochner introduces vivid and full
colours, it is as if he had received his inspira
tion in this respect from the precious caskets
for relics, studded with sparkling gems and
richly enamelled, of which Cologne possessed
untold beautiful specimens. Indeed Lochner
has a peculiar fondness for goldsmith's w(vk;
he delights in rich costumes, and decks his
saints out with various rich jewellery, which he
paints with special care.

One other important work attributed to
Lochner must be mentioned, the " Last Judg-
ment," now in the Cologne Museum. The
Saviour is seated in the middle, on high ; to the
left and right of him Mary and St. John kneel on
promontories. Out of the gulf between them
there issues a stream >/f departed souls, who are
received on the right side of Jesus by angels that
lead them into the gate of Paradise and Heaven,
on the left by multi-shaped devils that torment
them and drive them on towards Beelzebub and
the fiery gates of Hell. Many of the details

f

THE . ARLY MASTERS 21

of the scene, the approval which the angels
express as well as some of the incidents of the
tortures inflicted on the opposite side, verge
upon the comical, or at least seem to us to do so.
But that is a characterisdc of the times, and it must
be remembered that {nctures were then to a great
extent meant to serve as books — books, indeed,
for the most 'iliteratc, for a set of folk which
nowadays it would be probably difficult to
come across within civilised countries. We may
still meet with unbounded ignorance and with
stupidity, no doubt. Yet, upon the whole, the
human brun, by sheer compulncm and force of
circumstances, must have come to work more
easily in course of these centuries. Presenta-
tions which carry with them some elements of
exaggeration and qujintncss that cannot fail to
excite our risibility must, five hundred years ago,
have been barely forceful enough to do more
than just cause duller powers of conception to
grasp them.

A man like Lochner did not neglect the story,
and did not hesitate to introduce many incidents
that would bring the advantage of bliss, or the
terrors of damnation, home to the people. Yet
this part of his work did not engage lum as
much as the purely artistic nde. In his fieth

I

22 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

colour, he, a Suabian, approaches most of all to
another famous Suabian, his junior by one or two
generations, Hans Holbein the younger. The
type of St. John, on the other hand, reminds one
very strongly of the type of a youthful, manly
face which Diirer delighted in.

The death of Stephen Lochner signalises a
break in the tradition of the Cologne School.
He has some followers who continue in the
path he has laid out for them. But they are
not men of the first rank, and they cannot
compare with their model. The next important
Cologne painter, however — as far as we have
been able to establish a chronol(^y — departs
altogether from Lochner's manner, and his work
presents an altogether different appearance. At
first sight, indeed, they appear to have scarcely
any point in common, and it seems astounding
that so important a painter as Lochner should
have utterly lost his influence within less than
a generation's time. For the Master of the
Life of Mary must have had some, if not all,
of his schooling before Lochner died. But he
had it in the Netherlands, and his manner
follows that of Rogier van der Weijden, and
more particularly that of Dirk Bouts.
With the death of Lochner another new

Str^tH I.KkHtr trmtrntH
MADONNA WITH VIOI.KTS

THE EARLY MASTERS 23

feature is introduced in the story of the art
of the Colognese Schoc ; namely, all biogra-
phical data of every kind cease. From Lochner
down to Barthel Bruyn, who flourished ex-
actly a hundred years later, we have not been
able to identify a single painter among the men
whose work has been successfully sifted and
classified. We are thus compelled to take the
principal achievement of each man, and, until
good luck will have it that some document is
discovered which gives us the information we
require, we must designate him by means of his
principal work.

Such being the case, a lengthy treatment of
these painters is out of the question in a book
like the present one, the chief object of which
is to convey a lifelike picture of the man in
the artist. This is impossible, where there are
no biographical data, and I must restrict myself
to a short characterisation of a few of the re-
maining principal masters.

The Master of the life of Mary receives this
appellation from a set of eight scenes illustrating
the life of the Virgin, seven of which are now
at Munich, and one in London. Each panel is
nearly a yard in height and somewhat over a yard
in length. In spite of these modest dimensions

24 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

the scries may well be looked upon as a worthy
counterpart of Giotto's famous mural paintings
in the Arena chapel at Padua. There is the
same sort of calm grasp, the same happy faculty
of choosing the most pregnant moment of each
scene, the same moderation as to the intro-
duction of dramatic accent, prevalent in both
series. The Master of the Life of Mary tells
his story earnestly and soberly. There is not
any unusual degree of idealism about him. He
neither revels in the charms of colour nor is he
sentimental or ecstatic. His men are a good
deal more worldly than those of Lochner; his
women have seen more of care and are more
matter-of-fact. They have discarded the charmt
of taste and beauty as being not essential virtues.
They have become more humane, and commisera-
tion with people beset by worldly woes seems
their distinguishing characteristic. They seem
to think that there is something more practical
and valuable to live for than the mere pleasure
they bestow by exhibiting proper loveliness for
the contemplation of him who beholds.

All the stories with a sad vein in them come
to the fore now. The legends, and even the
martyrdom, of most saints contain fantastic
and ideal elements. The veneration of heavenly

THE EARLY MASTERS 25

ministers, the adoration of the Virgin and of
the Child in all its fOTms, in fact, evokes
purely optimistic, pleasurable sensations. Now
the tales of suffering and of grief, those in
which all the protean forms of human woe are
displayed, take the first rank in the choice of
the painters as subjects for their work. Stories
of the Passion, the sufiering of the Mother of
God, and nngle pictures in which psyclucal
rather than bodily pain are embodied, appear in
greater number.

Again, the people have become better educated.
Before this period a painter rested satisfied with
the attempt of bringing the truth embodied in
each story vividly and convincingly home to
the unlettered man for whom his picture was
made. Now there is some attention paid to
how everything happened. There is, of coiirse,
not yet any historical accuracy as we know it
to-day. Still, the details are more carefully con-
sidered, and it is plainly the desire of the artist
to be realistic in quite a diffimnt sense from
Lochner for example: he is debarred from attun-
ment only by the imperfections of lus own know-
ledge, not by any failing desire on his part. The
Virgin of Lochner is Lovely Womanhood, with
dreams of happiness glistening out of her eyes, a

26 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

subject for the worship of mankind. With the
Master of the Life of Mary she is a mother of
man, full of earthly cares and not at all above
the ordinary worry of everyday life, such as
troubles us all.

Not that the painter is exceptionally dismal or
pessimistic; he is only matter-of-fact. One of
the paintings of the series from which he gets
his name, the " Nativity of the Vii^in," is replete
with homelike, pleasant touches that betray warm-
ness of feeling. The bedroom in all its neatness,
with the clean sheets, orderly bed, wardrobe, box,
painstakingly depicted, betray the evident delight
the master took in perpetuating the outward
appearance of a well-ordered household in his
day. The neighbouring women have come in
to help and nurse Mother Anna; one of them
selects linen for the new-born infant and seems
to inquire of the others whether she has got hold
of the right piece. Another warms some linen,
a third pours water in a bath, and a fourth dips
her finger in it to see whether the temperature
is right, while the remainder busy themselves
with the mother herself. The whole scene it
depicted with such a degree of animated, yet
unobtrusive, matter-of-fact realism, that this
picture is an invaluable aid to us in our study

THE EARLY MASTERS 27

of mtnnen and customs quite apart from its
value as a work of art.

The question of donors' portraits has also
taken a step in the direction towards realism
in the meanwhile. Early paintings which con-
tain, besides the main subject of the picture,
effigies of the donor or donors who paid for
the picture, show these effigies in the form
of miniatures related to an obscure omer of
the pictiu*. Steadily the comparative Mze of
the donor-portrait increases, and, by the time
we are discussing at present, it has grown to
reach the same scale as the principal figures of
the painting ; the donor is, in fact, occasionally
shown as taking part in the action of the
punting, such as i.: is, and portraits of donors
in pictures of these later times have been mis-
taken for saints.

If -ndoor scenes, as we have already noticed,
have become quite realistic, out-of-door scenes
have at least made great strides in the same
direction. The development of landscape in
the Cologne School is very interesting. Early
pictures, dating from about the year 1350, dis-
play most shy and primitive attempts. A
corner of the gold -sky background perhaps
shows a diminutive attempt at clouds. The

28 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

gold background itself is embossed with an
ornament embodying a floral de»gn. But that

is as far as the attempt to compass natr.re
beyond the human figure goes. In the Ciaren
altar-piece one detects here and there a detached
feature or element of landscape ; a rock here, a
single tree there, a few yards of meadow with
some sheep yonder, each and all of them placed
isolated upon the gold background.

Then at last the foreground, between the
actors and the footlights, so to speak, is turned
into a naturalistic bit of landscape, a flowery
meadow with pebbles or roc This bit of
landscape gradually rises, encroaching slowly
upon the gold background. Occasionally, when
the very subject of the picture imperatively
demanded it, bits of real landscape appear.
Thus there is a Virgin in the Celestial Garden,"
which show a real garden, set about with walls,
filled with plants of all kinds; only the blue
sky is missing.

A special artistic trick, almost peculiar to the
Cologne School, tended to reUrd the natural
progress of development of landscape art. The
painters, more especially when they depicted one
or several saints in full figure, stood them up
in a row on a stage, as it were, and extended

THE EARLY MASTERS 29

a rich curtain, generally made of some brocaded
stufFs, behind them. This, going up to about
the height of the shoulders, set off the figures
most effectively. But it scarcely left any room
for landscape. And yet, landscape will not be
suppressed; we soon find it f(Hxing its way in
between the upper edge ci the curtain and the
unavoidable gold-sky background.

This gold - sky background is another pecu-
liarity of the Cologne School. It seems to have
been the main stronghold of tradition in art
there. It is common everywhere in the early
stages of painting. But it foils into desuetude
with the other schools as soon as the sluU of
the artists suffices for an attempt at more realistic
delineation. In Cologne even the Master of the
Life of the Virgin, who is plainly a follower if
not a pupil of Dirk Bouts, abides by the gold-
sky background, though his prototype does
not retain it any longer and he lumself is quite
realistic in the whole of lus landscape art
excepting this one feature, the sky.

The Master of the life of Mary has intro-
duced, as we have seen, several new traits into
the Colognese School ; his Netherlandish types,
his sobriety of tone, his realism in general con-
ception and in landscape particularly. Another

30 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTIS*:

novelty is a tendenqr to psychology in art.
There is a " Christ Crucified " in the Cologne
Museum by him which goes far beyond any-
thing that previous Colognese art can display.
The customary arrangement of placing the Cross
in the middle, Mary on Christ's right-hand side,
St. John on the other, Magdalene at the foot <^
the Cross, has been departed from. The Christ
Crucified is at the right side of the picture, and
Magdalene kneeling beyond it. Mary stands to
the left, and beyond her is St. John supporting
her. These are distinctly types that predict
the sfririt of the reformation. This is the St.
John of the fourth, not of the first or second
or third Gospel. The artist plainly attempts
to betray in the faces of the people whom he
has painted what is passing in their minds,
in quite a diflPerent manner from his prede-
cessors. In fact, his attempt touches upon the
highest stage of devotional art of all times.
For he wishes to portray a St. John moved
by the sensations and sentiments that he would
have had, had he lived in the artist's own
day !

The same desire to offer in his panel some-
thing more than a simple delight r the eye
is likewise apparent in other woi-KS by this

THE EARLY MASTERS 31

master, especially the " Madonna with St. Ber-
nard." This picture marks one more novelty
introduced by the Master of the Life of Mary
into the Colognese School. It shows half lengths
before a tort of balustrade. In this arrangement
the figures have about them the realism of a
portrait group.

The Master of the Holy Kinship may, in a
way, be considered to have taken up the style
of the Master of the Life of Mary. He, again,
has studied and learnt abroad ; consequently he
displays in some directions a novel character.
His prototypes are the painters of the southern
Flemish Lowlands — for example, Go-hard David
and the painters of Antwerp. But, like all the
others, he turns distinctly Colc^nese, as soon as
ever he reaches the town. The manner of his
continuing in the tracks of the Master of the
Life of Mary consists in his adoption of a
similar sobriety of conception. If we may say
that Lochner lived in heavenly spheres, and
the Master of the Life of Mary came down to
the plain matter-of-fact world, we may further
characterise the Master of the Holy Kinship
as having become the painter of the middle class.
There is little variation in his types, and he
imbues them with those virtues <x characteristics

32 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

which give them the air of high respectability
so dear to middle-class life. They are exceed-
ingly proper — they all have their best apparel
on, and they are careful of it ; in other words,
a little awkward and stiff in proportion. His
coloration is roseate, again, and distinctively
pretty ; he paints well, and is a skilled technician.
But his gamut of colours is limited, and purely
artistic motives do not govern his work to the
same degree as they governed a genius like Stephen
Lochner. The principal piece by this master,
the picture from which he derives his name,
shows the kinship of the Saviour seated amidst
the columns of an unreal bit of architecture.
Mary and St. Anne, seated on a throne in the
middle, hold the Christ-child between them ; it
extends its right hand over to St. Catherine,
about to solemnise the mystic marriage. Joachim
and Joseph, St. Barbara, St. Mary Cleophas, and
all the rest are placed round about rather stiffly ;
they all look well," but they do not introduce
any action into the picture. An altar-piece with
" Scenes from the Legend of St. Sebastian " (like
the kinship altar, now in the Museum of
Cologne), a " Crucifixion " at Nuremberg, and an
altar with " Scenes from the Life of the Christ-
child " at Munich, are other important works by

THE EARLY MASTERS 33

this master. He is, besides, the author of the
three splendid stained-glass windows in the north
aisle of the Cologne Cathedral.

One of the strangest artists of the school is
the Master of St. Bartholomew. He is one of
the earliest specimens on record of the type
which we now call decadent and a mannerist. In
an age where we find every other artist singularly
naive and simple, he alone is of a reflective — one
might be tempted to say scheming — turn of mind,
and there is an air of disingenuous aflfecution
about his work. With all that he is an ex-
tremely intelligent artist, a moat consdentious
crafbnun, and a singularly inta%sting personality.
Judging from the looks of his figures, and from
the fact that he often falls back upon Schongauer
for his compositions, we may safely conclude
that he hails from Suabia or the Upper Rhine-
One of his principal paintings, " The Altar of
the Crucifixion," was painted round about the
year 1 501 for the Odeum of the Carthunan
Church at Cologne. Another, " The St. Thomas
Altar-piece," was pwnted for the same pUce about
fifteen years earlier. For the latter piece he was
paid the comparatively large sum of 250 gold
florins, which shows that he had established a
high reputation as early as the year 1485. This

34 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

is the limit of the infn'nution we get out of
the archives about him.

If the Master of the Kinship Altar was the
painter of the stolid middle class in Cologne, the
Master of St. Bartholomew seems to have baa
the painter of high life. His types we tarn
refined, more intellectual than those of the odKr
master; but towards the end of the fifteenth
century there seems to have been among the
upper class a sort of hyper-aesthetic circle whid
embraced all the hysterical, overstrained women
and the mysteriously deep poets — in short, a dob
of Bunthomes and the new women *' of that day.
This is the set the Master of St. Bartholoamr
paints ; but he does not satirise them — he takn
them seriously. All his biblical scenes and mar-
tyrdoms look as if they had been done from the
private theatricals of this company. The amateur
actors flirt with the audience and with each other.
The ladies, all full round faces with ttiaii^
noaes and tiny mouths, simle nervously and Mtf>
ccmsciously, or they weep hysterically. There
» no end of afllecution in their bearing and u
the strained gestures of the spider/ fingered
hands. The Magdalen in the " Descent from
the Cross" (now in the Louvre at Paris) «up-
ports the left foot of the dead Christ with her

THE EARLY MASTERS 35

right hand, brings up her left to her ln%ast,
achieving all with a most elegant pose, and
looking out upon us with a degree of vivid
realism that is really astonishing ; she plainly begs
for our applause. On the " Crucifixion '* now
in the Museum tt Cologne, St. John carries )us
hand with a gesture of mid despair to his head,
but by the time it has reached it he seems only
to be trying whether his wig sits firmly. The
saints do not stand orderly in rows side by side,
as they used to. But on the left shutter of this
same " Crucifixion " St. Cecilia is leaning over to
the Baptist, evidently to wlusper some mA/uanct
to him (for she is smiling), wlule the others are
acting the principal scene ; and on the other
wing, he who is impersonating St. Alexius casts
a most sentimental look of love at the charming
St. Agnes. It is ten to one that, when this affair
with all its rehearsals, &c., is over, there will be
an engagement. On the St. Thomu altar the
Saviour steps out d the clouds on to a murble
pediment with the aur of a fiivourite tenor ; and
he looks sleek and well fed and altogether too
handsome, the very picture of a tenor— ><Mie of
those who were most wildly adored.

All the "costumes" — one cannot help using
the exprenion — are most elaborate and beautiful.

36 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

There arc magnificent silks and brocades, and a
mass of exquisite jewellery, which the master
paints most painstakingly, with evident delight
in the work. His drawing and perspective, like-
wise his coloration, place him in the front rank
of the School. Yet he, too, abides by the gold
background ; his tendency towards realism draws
the line at that.

Though the Master of the St. Bartholomew—
so called, by the way, after a fine triptych, now
in the Munich Gallery, representing six saints to
the right and left of St. Bartholomew, all foil
figures standing in a row before a brocaded cur-
toin— is an anomaly in so far as he paints reU-
gious subjects in an altogether irreligious vein;
though, then, he may not be ranked as an artist
possessing propriety of conception, his virtues
in other respects are manifold enough, as has
already been indicated. He is certainly more
interesting, and more of an out-of-the-way per-
sonality than the last impMtant artist of the
Colognese School, Barthel Bruyn the elder.

Bruyn wat a native of Wesel, where he wss
bom in 1493. He must have been a pupil of
Jan Joest of Kalkar, and turned up at Cologne in
1 513. He was a painter of recognised standbg
in this town by the year 1521. With his wifc

run EARLY MASTERS 37

Agnes he obtained, in the year 1533, possession of
the very same house in which Stephen Lochner
lived a century earlier. In 1550 his wife Agnes,
who had borne ham five children, died; two of
the sons, Arnold and Barthel the younger,
adopted the profession of their father, who died
in 1555. Bruyn had been elected councillor in
1 549 and in 1 5 52. In 1 529 his reputation was so
well established that he received orders from
abroad, notably for a big altar-piece for the
Church of St. Victor at Ximthen. He was much
sought after as a painter of portraits.

From these dates it appears that Bruyn can
have very little connection with the School as
it has been described so far. One would pro-
bably not think of connecting him with it were
it not for the fact that with him painting at
Cologne virtually stops. He is a post-DOrerian
artist— a man who, of course, no longer uses the
gold background. Bruyn is an able craftsman;
more can scarcely be swd of him, except with
reference to his portraits. Some of these — for
example, the "Burgomaster Arnold von Brau-
weiler " in the Museum of Cologne— are really
excellent. It speaks well for his work that much
of it has been taken for that of Holbein. His
coloration is somewhat cheerless, and the general

38 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

tone of his work is pessimistic— not so buoyant
and interesting as that of the painters previously
treated. The flame which was lighted up so
gloriously at Cologne has died out, and its Ust
flickering is represented by Bmyn's work.

CHAPTER II

MART N SCHONGAUER

"Just as it wouU be unfair to despise spring
sources, on account of their not having as much
water as the creeks that issue from them tnd
steadily increase as they progress, so it would be
an unfair thing if one should aUow the fame
of the exceUent artist, Martin Schoen of
Kallenbach, quite to suppress the masters pre-
viously conadcred. He hailed the light of day
for the first time in Kallenbach, and then graced
Kolmar with his residence; he was commonly
called ' handsome Martin.' It is, indeed, quite
certain that he surpassed all his predeceaaora
throughout r^any as to draughtsmanship,
painting, and engraving upon copper, but he
himself, out of natural modesty, readily granted
them the fame of having been his preceptors.

" He was an intimate friend of Pietro Peru-
gino, and each frequently delighted the other
by sending some original drawing, and profited
by the other's art, as connoiaaeurt may readily

40 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

glean from a perusal of th«r wwrk. Beyoad
that, indeed, they resembled each other in m
much as Italy owes her perfection in the
noble art of painting to the famous school of
its Pietro Perugino and the Raffaello d'Urbino
issuing therefrom, and Germany, at that time
still pretty much of a pauper as to art, owei
its enrichment to Schongauar.

" Very few of the work* of this gifted hand
are still to be seen, yet such as have been handed
down to us— a very trim picture of • Mary,* an
excessively lamentable 'Christ Carrying the Cross,'
the well-devised ' Magi,' and the all but perfect
' Temptation of Saint Anthony ' (which Michel-
angelo frequently copied in his younger years,
and never grew tired of praising), among them-
prove what a master-mind this artist was as to
compOMtion and draughtsmanship. Consequently
it is quite right that we should enter his name
in the book of eternity, although his hand had
to waste away after the heart had received the
death-blow from the insatiable reaper of men,
as early as i486, in which year DOrer twvelkd
to him in order to learn his art."

To this we may add the words of Vasari, who
says in his " Life of Raimondi " that the engravings
of "Martino of Antwerp" were introduced into

4- ^ ' OklF.S OF G£RM\N flSTS

^ r..r:i i ^c^usai ff their w 'ffe. Beyond
tha^ indeei:, 'hry resembled each 'fhc m to
;!vuch as "wes. htr perfe^" i the

!>oblc a:* of ra-.r.iinf :he f-imo ■ ' -l of

-ts P-e-ro P. - at."-- 'ho KuiT: ■ '• ■h\m
icsuiiti therrir. in. .in.i derma ; . ... " . Tie
it 1' ■ r^i- . ■. . ii ,.f n I .wf-^r ■-''ve?

'\ workr of this

if. stii! • 'f'^" "t such as have hccii handc>
d..H.; to us — a vff trin- ;r tu- of ' Mjry,' »r
CA:r-^i -ivlai.jcntabic 'Chn<' C.r riny ih<- Crtm,
The we!i-<l-visc ' ■Magi,' ; '^'rx W hut ncrtect
- J ., . r-r . , ■ - ! , .-X.-iil ■ -n V 'vhirh Michel-
^ ■■ . .... :■' Hi. ) -.linger jretfl,

i ia ' .;row tsrcu • ' praising), amon? them—
prove whet a niasur-mind this artist was as to
c ^.TifKftirion and draughtsniasishir Cnnsequenth
it IS -i r--;-^: 'hat wc ulu t-nter hi', r, mf
,,. -re- ..♦ •••• , -.TUi;'! his -..«)■! hai

i\ .,:'t;T h irr had receive- ■• the
■ , ... .ht. ins;4f ■.al'lc reaper of roea,

> ■' . n wh-ch year Dttrer traveJkc
f ^ M ifArn his art."

i , . - v j,iv! thv \vord<: jf V asari, who

- V. - t ... ' ; ** * 1- T > . V . -rtfrr ; v»i»

v)f •• Martin»> ^ vc-p' were introduccu into

MARTIN SCHONGAUER 41

Italy in great numbers. "The first were the
'Five Foolish and the Five Wise Virgins' with
their burning and their extinguished lamps; a
'Christ upon the Cross,' with St. John and the
Madonna at his feet— an engraving, so good,
that the Florentine mimature-painter, Gherardo,
undertook to copy it with the burin, and suc-
ceeded very well too as far as he went, though
he could not finish it, death intervening.

'« Martino then issued four rounds with the
Evangelists, and on small sheets Christ and the
twelve Apostles ; then St. Veronica, with six other
Saints of the same »*e, and some coats of arms
of German gentry, supported partly by clothed,
partly by nude men and women. In the same
manner he issued a 'St. George Slaying the
Dragon'; 'Christ before Pilate washing his
Hands'; and the 'Ascension of the Virgin,"
rather large, with all the Apostles, and this is
one of the best prints of thU master. Upon
another sheet he represented 'St. Anthony,'
tortured by devils and borne by numbers of
them up into the air, the most variegated and
strangest shapes, which delighted Michelangelo"
(Buonarroti) "in his youth to such a degree
that he illuminated them."
With regard to thi» last statement Condivi

41 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

reports that Michelangelo went so far as to
execute a careful copy in oils of Schongauer's
engraving, and did not undertake the colour-
ing without making conscientious studies from
nature on the fish market.

The Schongauers hailed originally from the
village of Schongau, in Upper Bavaria, and
settled in Augsburg. Caspar, a goldsmith,
migrated thence to Colmar, where he became a
citizen on the 29th of May 1445. He had five
sons. Three of them were goldsmiths, Caspar the
younger, George, and Paul ; two of them turned
painters, Ludwig and our Martin ^."thongauer, the
most important German artist during the second
half of the fifteenth century.

Caspar must have come to Colmar about the
year 144O, for in the very same year in which
he acquired citizenship he also became a member
of the Council, and that always presupposed a
residence of at least five years. Caspar owned
a house in the Schadel Gasse, or Skull Street, a
quarter frequented by artists; he ohen executed
goldsmith's work for the town, and he it men«
tioned in one document as being ttiil alive in
the year 148 1.

The documents arc, however, somewhat con-
fuung, and many of those referring to the

MARTIN SCHONGAUER 43

Schongaucrt have been tampered with. Our
Martin is mentioned as a house-owner in the
Schadel Gasse as early as 1469, and this seems
to clash with the above d»te of his father's
death.

Schongauer wm also known by the sobriquet
"Schon" or •♦SchOn", which was not an abbre-
viation of his name, but used in the sense of
"beautiful," as appears from the circumstance
that the alternative "Hubsch," " Hipsch Martin,"
was sometimes used. Hans Burgkmair painted
a copy of Schongauer's self-portnUt, and pwted
a slip of paper on the back of the panel, on
which he wrote, "Master Martin Schongauer.
painter, called beautiful Martin on account of
his craft." He further states the name of
Martin's father correctly, says that he came of
an Augsburg family, and cites Colmar as his
birthplace, also stating the date of hta detth;
this, however, has been partly obliterated in
course of time.

It is fairly ctrtain that our Martin Schongauer
was born at Colmar between 1440 and 1450.
probably after 1445. He was his father's pupil,
seems further to have studied under one L. Riist,
and also, if we may believe Lambe' ' ^..f.>n»bMd,
under kogier van den W«jd«i. Li> >'

44 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

to Vasari : " In Germany an engraver appeared
at that time, who remained true to the manner
of his master, Rogier, but did not quite attain
to this one's excellence of coloration. On the
other hand, he acquired greater facility in his
engravings, which were marvellous for their time,
and, for that matter, they are esteemed highly
enough by our educated artists to-day, smce their
workmanship is perhaps a trifle archaic and stiff,
yet otherwise right brave."

In the year 1465 Schongauer visited Leipsic,
where he was matriculated at ;he university.
Four yean later he is registered as the owner
of the house in the Schadel Street. In 1477 he
was probably at the zenith of his fame, and
bought other houses. In the year 1488 he moat
likely fell ill, and consequently founded a mass
for his soul, to be held annually in the church
of St. Martin. In the following year he can be
traced at Basle on the 15th of June; it ii
supposed, however, that he had worked m this
town before. Then, in 1489, he became a citizn
of Breiaach, where he died on the 2iid ai
February 1491, probably of the plague. This
much, or rather this little, is the limit of our
knowledge regarding Martin Schongauer's life.
We know of copies of Schongauer's paintings.

MARTIN SCHONGAUER 45

which are dated i477. 1482. H85. but

none of his own paintings were dated, nor is a
single one among them really authenticated. His
engravings are signed with his monogram and
mark, but none of these either is dated.

Wimpheling, a Strassburg compatriot and
humanist, writing in 1505, about fifteen years
after Schongauer's death, reports about lum:
"He was so excellent in his art that his easel
paintings were carried to Italy, Spain, France,
England, and other parts of the world." To-
day very little of all this work is extant ; even
Colmar possesses not much. Wimpheling speaks
of paintings in the churches of St. Martin
and St. Francis ; but the Renusiance, and more
especially the dghteenth century, did not cherish
old "Gothic" art, and such as may have been
spared until then suffered during the years of
the French Revolution. It is reported that in
1796 many works of art, some Schongauers
among them, were trampled upon and publicly
burnt in the market-place of Mttnater, near
Colmar.

The church of St. Martin in this town, how-
ever, still harbours the altar-piece which has
always been considered the Schongauer. It is a
"Madonna in the Rose-bower." The Virgin,

46 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

seated, supports the naked Christ-child upon her
left arm. She is dressed in red, both she and the

Christ-child look down upon us, but in varioui
directions. Many-coloured birds enliven the rose-
bushes which hedge in the place where the
Virgin is seated. Angels above her hold a
crown over her head. God the Father and the
Holy Ghost formerly hovered above her, bat
this part of the panel has been lost. The figure
of the Vii^n is above life-size; the whole was
painted upon a gold background; the cdlora-
tion is lustrous yet harmonious.

There are a number of paintings ascribed to
Schongauer in the Museum at Colmar, among
which prominence should be given to the wings
of an altar-piece, formerly at laenhdm, and a
set of sixteen scenes from the story of the Phanon,
formerly in the Church of the Dominicans at
Colmar. Yet it is very likely that none of them
were painted entirely by his hand. Nor can any
of the other paintings, ascribed here and there
to Schongauer, be regarded as more than the
productions of his studio. They probably owe
their composition to his idea, but very little of
them did he execute himself. Such are a beauti-
ful little " Madonna with Grapes" in the Gallery
at Vienna, a small " Nativity " in the Gallery

MARTIN SCHONGAUER 47

at Munich, one of the panels that came to
Munich from the old Palatinate Collection at
Mannheim, and another "Nativity," somewhat
loud in its coloration, and with rather less founded
claims to be considered authentic, now in the
Berlin Gallery.

Conndering the dearth of puntingt still extant,
the enstence of more than a hundred engrav-
ings on copper by Schongauer is to be doubly
welcomed. Not only do they allow us to form
a good idea of the style of his art, they embody —
it may safely be assumed — the most important
part of his w<xk as an artist.

A German jnedecessn' <^ Schongauer, whose
name has not been handed down to us, but
whom we call the Master "E S", from the
monogram with which some of his plates are
signed, was the engraver who raised the art of
the burin, technically speaking, from its infancy
to its stage of maturity. He lived at Strassburg
proba!)ly, and, nnce this is not Aur from Colmar,
we may well assume that Schongauer was actually
his pupil as far as engraving is concerned. At
any rate, he acquired his craft through the study
of the Master "E S's" plates, if he did not
learn under h'.m personally. Whereas the Master
"E S" was -^iie one to establish engraving as

48 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

a fine craft, Schongauer was the man to raise
it to the state of a noble art, and through his
work it had become a perfect peer of the arts
of painting and sculpture.

Schongauer's plates reveal qualities at once
mystical and realistic. He engraved religiow
subjects, a few scenes from everyday life, some
heraldic designs and ornaments — the time for
mythol<^ical themes and allegories with nude
figures had not yet come. His quiet, sweetly
charming Madonna is a noble type, an idealisa-
tion of nature reflecting a deep and earnest
mind. " The Temptation of St. Anthony " — the
plate which excited the admiration of Michd-
angelo — ofFers a curious instance of realistic
study. The saint is beset and tortured by
diabolical figures, each of which is pieced together
out of various fragments or organs of different
animals. The chimeras thus created are quite
fantastic, but the single members of each have,
most of them, been accurately studied from nature.
This is a print which embodies the tfnrit of the
century. Schongauer's contemporaries and suc-
cessors came to accept his treatment of the
subject as their own, and his conceptions reigned
supreme for many years to come. The " Carrying
of the Cross by Christ," on His way to Golgotha,

MARTIN SCHONGAUER 49

is another instoncc of his vaticinal gift, to divine
the yearning of his age and embody it in
form which wu to be Accepted as • sundard
for generations to come. The last-named com-
position was imiuted agun and agun, and it
was a canon for even so independent a spirit
as that of Albrecht Diircrs.

The set of plates illustrating "The Passion
of Our Saviour" give evidence of Schongauer's
rich powers of imaginaticm. He was never at
a loss for a vivid presentation of the inddents
of each theme, and mmy items which, in the
art of the age before him, were mere abstractions,
were infused by his genius with life and veri-
similitude. Thus, for instance, the tormentors
of Christ, who scourge Him and crown Him
mth thorns, are almost ludicrous caricatures
in the treatment c£ German artists prior to
Schongauer, because of these masters' inability
truly to characterise villainy. Schongauer, with
too much realistic feeling and too much sagacity
to exaggerate, became convincing and forceful.
He is symbolical, as it were, of the liberation
of Cisalpine art from its period of subjection.
True genius and personality in the fine art,
had Uved and worked before him; but, in the
economy of the world, it had appeared to be so

D

JO STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

small a thing that all individuality and emy
name had been submerged In the gcner *! ty
of progress. Schonguuer is the earlies: name .n
the annals ui Cisalpine art, the first artist whom
even contemporaries esteemed sc highl> that
they agreed to preserve his memory along with
that of other men who had achieved ftme npoa
other fields of human activity.

CHAPTER in

ALBRECHT dORER

On the 25th d»y of June, in the year 1455.
Philipp Pirkheimer celebnted his wedding with
much splendour and gaiety up at the Castle in
Nurembei^. While the dancing and fcsu/ities
were at their highest, a poor, weary mechanic, or
rather craftsman, entered the town with the pur-
pose of settling there, and became • looker-on.
Neither he nor the bridegroom knew or imagined,
of course, that a dcsceadant of eat H of them
would once become famous citizens ot" Nurer-
berg— famous for their achievements each in his
line, and famous for their mutual friendship.

The artisan was Albrecht DOrer the elder, a
goldsmith hailing from Ae German colony in
the far east, in Hungary, who had just completed
his plgrimage through Germany, and especially
the Netherlands. There he had improved his
craft under the guidance of well-known masters,
and had come now to settle down in the Fran-

52 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

conian capital. He served Jerome Holpcr here
for many a year, until Holper gave him his
daughter Barbara in marriage ; this was in the
yew 1467. They had no less than eighteen
children, among whom Albrecht, the great ardit,
was the third, bom on the 2ist of May 1471.
At his b ptism Anthony Koberger, the famous
printer, acted as sponsor. Only three boys out
of all the eighteen children reached maturity.
Hans became a painter, pupil of Wohlgemuth
and his brother Albrecht, and was finally court-
painter to the King of Poland at Cracow. Andrew
was a goldsmith like his father, lived for a
time in Nuremberg, and finally went to Cracow
upon the death of his brother Hans, whose aAm
he regulated.

Albrecht the younger, our Albrecht, was i
most aflFectionate son, and upon all occasions he
is full of gratitude to his father, and sounds die '
praise of his probity. His life, he says, was one
of trials and tribulations throughout, but kt
never made an enemy, and never swerved u
inch from the straight path of righteousness sad
piety. Twice, at least, Albrecht the younger
furnished a material proof of his filial love in
the shape of carefully painted portraits of bis
father. The exfMression of his emotions towiidi

ALBRECHT DCRER 53

his old mother were not less sincere, though they
may be called a shade less warm. When she
had become a widow, and penniless, he took her
to his own home and cherished her for ten years
until her death. She lay ill in bed in his house
{<x exactly a year, and it broke ius heart that,
when she did die finally, it happened so suddenly
that he could not be called in time to solace her
k.id receive h'"* final blessing. He made a
drawing of her when she was old and already
approaching death, but it appears that he never
painted her.

Albrecht the goldsmith, says his son, was
.tent upon Ininging up his children in the fiear
of God, so that they should be placable and
pleasant to their fellow-men. His daily admoni-
t' —one which the widow Barbara continued
long after the sons were grown up — was that
they should love God and act faithfully towards
their neighbours. He took a particular delight
in our Albrecht, as he noticed how diUgent and
eager for knowledge the Ud was. So he allowed
him to attend school, and, after Albrecht the
younger hka t;.arned to read and write, he was
taught the goldsmith's craft. Being industrious
in this, too, he was after a while able to execute
neat work ; but, at the same time, he diKOvered

54 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

that his inclination lay in another direction^
towards the art of painting.

Several drawings gave evidence of Durer's pre-
cocity. The most famous among them is the
strangely grave portrait of himaclf done at the
age of thirteen, upon which he scribbled on t
later day : " I portrayed this after my own image
in a glass in the year 1484, when I was stUl a
child." Another is a sketch, probably of one
of the "^^'ie Virgins, very likely copied from an
old prin., upon which the quondam owner wrote:
" This is also old. Albrecht Durcr made it for
me, before he came to the painter, in Wo%.
muth's house in the upper attic of the rear build-
ing, in presence of Conrad Lomayer, defunct.**

When young Durer communicated his wish to
his father, the latter was naturally in nowise de-
lighted, for he regretted the waste of time which
had been spent upon learning the goldsmith's craft.
However, he assented m the end, and apprenticed
his son, on the 30th of November i486, to Michwi
Wohlgemuth for a term of service to last thne
years. Durer was industrious again, and he
learnt well. He further says something about
this period, the phrasing of which may possibly
be construed to mean that he was much left to
the care of Wohlgemuth's men {i.e. that Wohl-

ALBRECHT DORER 55

gemuth himself did not trouble much about
him), though it is more likely thtt he simply
wants to say that he suffered a good deal at the

hands of Wohlgcmuth's men, who were his
elders and treated him roughly. After his term
of service had expired, DQrer was sent abroad by
his father, as was the custom of those days.

His first goal was Colmar and Martb Schmi-
gauer, whose reputedm had spread all over
Germany. But, by the time he rrached Colmar,
Martin had died. Diircr staycu a short while
with Schongauer's brothers, and he also went
to Basle. How long he remained there we do
not know. Durer fortunately jotted down much
about his life, but nothing about this most per-
plexing period of lua prentice peregrinations, in
which we diould have been especially interested.
Thus it happens that we arc uncertain about
his first visit to Venice and Italy. It possibly
occurred in the course of these early travels.
Some contemporary notices and dates on draw-
ings, however, seem to indicate that tlw visit
took place dt<xtly after his marraga.

He was married within a hm months after
his return. He had been sent abroad by his
father on the iith of April 1490, and had
been called back so as to arrive home at

56 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTKTS

Nuremberg on the i8th of May 1494. There-
upon Hans Frey came to terms with Diirer's
ftther. and, on the 7th of July, Frey's daughter
Agnes was given in marriage to our Alhraekt
Her dowry was two hundred florins, at least u
much as so many pounds in our day. It would
have been rather an unusual thing for him to
go off upon another journey, straightway. Yet,
he certainly did visit Venice before the jtu
1495 over.

Dtirer did a sympathetic sketch of Agnes
when she was still his betrothed ; but his draw-
ings of her later on in life, as his wife, are
certainly not lovable of themselves, nor does he
•eem to have wasted much love upon them.
She certainly had something forbidding about
her, and wu beyond a doubt not the wife of
his bosom. Dfirer's great friend, WtUiUd
Pirkhcimer, who was referred to in the opcft-
ing lines of this chapter, wrote about Agnes
after Diirer's death, in a letter to a mutual
friend. "I have received," he says, "your
lettw, in which you speak so nicely of me and
praise me much more than I feel I deserve ; all
of which, however, I will hy to the door rf
our dear friend, Albrecht Diirer. For ibtt
you loved him so nncerely for his virtuaa tad

ALBRECHT dORER 57

his genius, you doubtless love them who were his
friends, and to his friendship, not to my own
deserts, I owe your praise. Indeed, in Albrecht
I have lost the very best friend I had in the
world, and 1 grieve at nothing more than that
he should have had such a bitter end, which I
can lay to no one's account but that of his
wife, who worried his heart and was nagging
at him in such wise, that in the end he WM
emaciated and worn down to nothing, like a
billet. She did not allow him to aeek cheer, or
virit people. This shrewish woman never let
care depart, for which behaviour she indeed had
no excuse: and she egged him on to work
night and day, that he should cam more and
be able to leave her something when he died.
And she still carries on as if she most go to
nek and ruin, in spite of the fact that Albrecht
left her almost the value of 6000 florins. But
there is no contentment apparent, and, in short,
she alone is the cause of his death. I myself
often held up her distrust to her, and prophesied
what it would come to in the end; but very
little thanks I got for my pains. For whoever
was well disposed to tlui man and tried to pro-
tect him, he was deemed an enemy by her, which
greatly sorrowed Albrecht and hurried him to

58 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
his grave. I haven't seen her since his death,
an.a haven't admitted her, though I have beea
of use to her since in many ways. But she
lacks confidence, and whoever upholds his own
opinion, and doesn't yield to her in all points,
him she suspects and his enemy does she become.
Therefore, I would much rather that she wen:
far away from me than in my neighbourhood.
To be sure, she and her sisters aren't rogues;
on the contrary, I don't in the least doubt that
they are honest and pious women. But it were
better for one to have a rogue, who in other
respects is kind to one, rather than such nagging
and scolding pietists, who never give a moment's
peace, night or day. Be that as it may, we must
rest the matter ;vith the Lord; may He be
gracious to poor Albrecht. For he was a pious,
righteous man, and as he lived so he died. We
need not fear for his salvation. May God grant
us grace to follow him into bliss when our
time comes."

Firkheimer's integrity is beyond suiptdoB,
though he may have coloured matters just a
little. For no doubt he was a man to have led

Diirer into an expense occasionally, which Agnes
might well look upon as an extravagance in their
state of life. And, again, he will surely have

ALBRECHT DORER 59

encouraged Diircr in the punuit of hi» ideals,
which did not tend to the enlargement of his
estate. But we have the testimony of one whose
voice is a good deal more important than Pirk-
heimer's on this issue — the voice of Diirer him-
self. He who is the model of affectionate
gratitude whenever he speaks of his father and
mother, and who even speaks, in a way, Idndly
and considerately of his father-in-law and brother-
in-law, is rigidly cold and reticent about his wife.
Not a word breathes of love or even respect for
her; and ten years after his marriage he cracks
a joke at her expense — in a letter to this same
Pirkheimer — which, even taking the coarseness
of the age into connderation, is cynical past
endurance, and is altogether unthinkable as having
been made with reference to a person for whom
he had a vestige of affection left. She had borne
him no children, and thus — as sentiment went in
those times — the main link that might have
bound them together in clever intimacy was
missing.

Upon his return to Nuremberg DUrer imme-
diately went to work in earnest, and we must
remember the practice of his profession was, in
those days, more like the pursuit of some busi-
ness than like the free and unrestrained life of

6o STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

an artitt as we know it. His first activity wu
directed to such things as could be readily changed
for money. The art of the copper-engraver wu
the one which appealed to a wide public, and was
thus sure of a large custom ; while, on the other
hand, it was rated and paid for l^her than dte
other popular art, woodcut. DQrer did not ite
Schongauer, but he must have seen and studied
Schongauer's plates — ^the principal output of the
Colmar artist's life — and he was also acquainted
with the engravings of Schongauer's predecesson
and contemporaries.

The governing impulse of his early engraved
work becomes apparent when we consider 1m
chmce of subjects. He denres to supjdy Im
customers with all the kinds of pictorial print
that they possibly can crave for. Madonnas,
biblical subjects, and saints catered for religious
wants and were sold at church doors, whence
they were ofiered up to the Virgin or some patron
samt who had responded to the devotee's prayer;
or they were taken home to sore as diauau^
altar-{neces m some nook of the room. Again,
Diirer engraved pictures of strange soldiers and
Turks; or of figures from everyday life, such
as the gallant standard-bearer ; or even of mon-
strosities, like the double-bodied, eight-footed

it

^, ■ .ad, SMlly. he begu. to trf«t the F«wmg

„f,„„,„f*cGr«kandRo,n.n«.tu«. Hon«

.„d Virgil and ^ lw<« <«»»<» >^«T
hou«hold. D««r l»d »» f-^ f
,11 this ; wh« Bttle Itanty knowledge of .n-

r U of hi. euly mythologic P.«ur»

„ quite fant«tic .nd quite umntelUg-bk »
can .aroely i^ugine which of rte^o^
or heroc. he intended lome of h» «g«W to

"C'subiec. which h. touch«i. Da«f, »n-
ceH,, L \L of b«.ut, turned into a fine work
TL The ,n=n of his day. however, loo^
upon mo.t of them doubtless rather »
pL of news. The picture. w« » Aem
pr«ty much what our new.p.p.» •« <»•
^ Kcw =f early engravi-V. « f""*'
we are d*. to d.» th«n .ppwomatdy w. h he

help of drawing.. »d bTI-yi^ "mlualW
«gL«-Mr.'-. monogru—whuJ. gr«lu.lly

change, i. the yean go by.

it

pig; and, finally, he bq5«. » '^^J^
i„ and ««iy of "tiqmty, by ««««« "P"

of ,„me of *. Greek and Ronun atatue.. Homer
.„d Virgil and their hero., rrt «»m<»
; .he h„u«hold. !»« had »» f-^^f
J, what little litetery toowledg. of an-

:r J. of hia earl, n-ythologica p.«-.«
.„ nuite f.n.a..ic and ,ui.e «mntell.g.bl. to
can acarcely inugine which of rte^o^
„ heroea he intended .om. of h» fi««e. to

"C subjco. which he .o»ch«l, m«r-, »n-
cerit, and love of beaut, turned into a fine w^k
aJt. The ,r,=n of his day, however, loo^
upon moat of them doubtk.s rather a. «l«We
/„e, of news. The picturea "
prttty ...uch what our newapapen .«
' Jw ,-,f Aeae earl, engravi-V. « f*":'^- ^'
we are d*. to det. d»n .pr««»».e y w>th he

help of drawinp. «d br V^VH """''"l^'u'
«gL««.-Mn»-. monogr«.-whuJi gradually

changea the yeua go by.

62 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

The metal engravings of these early years are
his pot-boilers. The work that really filled his
artistic soul was executed upon an entirely dif-
ferent field of art — namely, upon that of wood
cut. Very soon after lu» return to Nurembeig he
commenced a teriet of fifteen \ugt woodcuti to
illustrate the Book the Revebtion of St. Joha.
The size indicates lulian influence. Beades,
the landscapes on several sheets are plainly re-
miniscent of South Tyrolese scenery, and on one
picture, " The Martyrdom of St. John " (Bartsch
6i), we behold the lion of St. Mark on hii
column. All of this cwrobontes the aatuoqptioB
that Durer must have inMted Venice at aooi
time before the completion and tnue of this
series. The Revelation pictures were published
in 1498. The theme seems, upon first conside-
ration, unsuitable for pictorial treatment; yet
some Bibles prior to Diirer, which contained but
very few New Tesument jnctures, devoted t
comparatively large number to subjects chosen
from the Book of Revehd<m. Diirer was, above
all, attracted by the opportunity for speculative
fancies offered by the subject. The play of his
imagination is wonderful, and it is marvellous
how he compasses subjects that apparently defy
all attempts to handle them pictwially. Hit

ALBRECHT DORER ^3
tact that he should h.Te undcrttken so twioa. »
usk become. tU the mofe .urtfing when we
con«der th.t he wm .ewccly twenty-five years
oMwhen he began it! This alone gives u. a
splendid insight into his artistic nature^

Before the series was completed Durer had
already commenced two new ones of equalunpor-
.ance; these were theso^aUcd "Larger
an intensely dnunatic ver«on of the story told
in twelve sheets, «»d the " Life of the Virgm. a
beautiful epic, in which contentment and even
the charm of grace reign supreme, in twenty
pictures. These two were, however, not com-
plcted and issued as sets before the year 1511.
Besides these the early year, produced sevenl
detached large woodcttts.

Why Diirer wm pwticularly attracted by tlu.
form of art, it is not diiBcult to determine. It
as far as he was concerned, the easiest
process. He was not hampered by the tedious,
ness of the cutting of the blocks. " « »»*
the professional woodcutter was mlnady »
ing fixture. Diirer had only to draw hu de«gn
upon the Wock. ThU wM a boon eagerly to
be grasped at by an artist whose mental eye was
so fullTf visions as Diirer'. was. He was too
fiiU for any slow method of utterance; engrav-

64 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
ing upon copper was slow work, and painting
still more so. The rapidity of the pen was
scarcely equal to the task of crystallising the
creations of his genius. And if the woodcutter
lagged behind, it did not matter ; for hit »low-
ness did not detun DUrer.

He does not at first seem to have been much
in sympathy with the art of painting. The
earliest works we know are painted with water-
colours apparently, upon fine canvas. Among
the best known are the " Portrait of Him«elf " aii
young man, the "Portrait of Elector Frederick
the Wise," and the "Triptych Altar-piece," for-
merly in the Chapel at Wittenberg and now in the
Dresden Gallery. The coloration is light, but
there is no lustre, and the medium has an un-
lovely effect when used in this manner upon
canvas.

The two last-named pictures were possibly
done at Wittenberg in 1494 or I49S- But the
Saxon Court may have ordered them at Nurem-
berg. It is certainly strange that Diirer, if he
made a trip to Venice and a second one to
Wittenberg all within a year and a half of his
wedding day, should not have jotted down the
least note of them. For he is very commum-
cative, and he wrote a short account of his

ALBRECHT DORER 65

family and life, composed a diary on one journey,
as we shall see later on, and became an author
of several books, in which he occasionally refer*
to facts of his life.

Even after Diirer tikes up painting in oils
seriously, he sometimes reverts to his old
technique of water-colours on canvas. Some of
his first work in oil has the appearance of being
a sort of stepping-stone from the earlier style
to the latter. Thus there are two wings of an
altar-piece (the central portion of which seems
to be lost, two other wings being by Hana
Suess von Kuhnbach and not by Durer), upon
which we see " Job in his Trials " (in the Frankfort
Gallery), and a "Fifer and Drummer" (in the
Cologne Gallery), where the figures are dis-
tinctly outlined, and where we perceive so much
"drawing" that they look tinted rather than
painted.

The so-called Piumgartncr altar at Munich—
the central piece of which is a " Nativity," and
upon the wings of which Durer painted, as
tradition goes, two of his friends, the one as
St. George, the other as St. Eustace— displays
a good deal more of painter-like qualities.
Pupils, however, had a good deal to do with
the execution. Of painter-Uke qualities, how-

66 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

ever, more tjupeai — as far as the early work
goes — in a picture of small dimensions, the
portrait of one Oswolt Krel. In this he has
become really painter-like, and, more than that,
has become truly Diirerian ; in other words, has
attained a proper style. For, though vn fai
him now seriously striving to master tltti ttw
technique of an artist in oils, his inborn iiicfi»
tions toward energetic, forceful draughtsmniF
ship, and towards a suggestive delineation tf
his model's character, have in no wise abated.

Within ten years of his return Diirer had
succeeded in making a name for lumself. JRe
received sufficient orders for work; hb «igitt>
ings and woodcuts sold well. The latter U
spread his fame far beyond the Unuts of 1m
own town, or even his country, and news came
from Venice that they were fraudulently copied
there. He no longer needed to consider what
sort of article the public liked to buy ; he in
now pretty sure that they would welc<Mne enif-
thing he issued. "

The year 1504 witnesses the completion of
several important works which were done in
this spirit. Foremost among them are three
engravings on copper, "The Nativity," an
enchanting idyl; the "St. Eustace," Diirer's

ALBRECHT DORER 67

largest plate, important as an embodiment of
his principles of landscape art ; and the " Adam
and Eve," which is the earliest published indica-
tion of his studies of proportion — studies that
occufned his mind throughout almoft the whole
of lus life. In Diirer^s own estimation these
will have been secondary to a set of drawings
of the Passion, called the " Green Passion," from
the colour of the paper on which they are
drawn. They represent the third, possibly the
fourth time that he had taken up this theme.
Often enough the inventive powers of an artist
fail him before he fimshes a nngle set of FasMon
pictures. Diirer's wealth of imagination and
his creative powers seem boundless. There is
no single repetition to be found in the " Green
Passion." Compared with his (in the main) earlier
versions this one is freed from dross, simplified,
and rsused to a higher standard of beauty.

This sanw year^ 1 504, in fine — ^is the date of
production <rf Diirer's " Adoration of the Magi,"
the most important among his early paintings.
The figures arc fewer than on his previous altar-
pieces; they are not yet life-size, but they lack
the many imperfections which characterised
them formerly, as being more or less related
to "Gothic" predecessors. The poses are un-

68 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
affected, the fold, of the draperies fl'^^ grace-
fully, and all is more simple than it had been
ever before in Durer's work.

So far the development of Diirer as an artist
had been progressing on smooth lines. Now
there came a sudden interruption.

We do not kr • for certain what may have
induced Diirer leave his home and his
elientiU, if we may so call it, in the year 1505,
to visit Venice. It has been suggested that he
went for business reasons, to suppress piratical
copies of his works. Yet, th- earUest dat«l
copies of this sort engraved :4arc AnttW
the sale of which infringed upon hit own rights,
hail from the year 1506, and Durer's energetic
appeals to the Signoria of Venice to stop this
nuisance are still later. Probably, after all, the
mere desire to free himself for a time at least
from the depressing trammels of everyday life,
and the yearning towards a more liberal art-
atmosphere than that of Nuremberg, were the
real factors which decided him to undertake the
journey. At any rate, this is the spirit which
the ten letters he wrote to his friend Pirkheimer
at home breathe. They are most valuable indica-
tors of the man and the artist at that time.
Pirkheimer had a keen sense for the require-

ALBRECHT dCRER 69

ments of genius, and it was probably he who
decided Diirer finally to go upon this journey.
It was he, too, who loaned him the necessary
funds, asking Diirer at the tame time to do
some commisMOiis for him, probably in order to
make Durer't obligations teem lets. " I pray
you to have patience as regards my debt," writes
Diirer in his first letter; "I think of it oftener
than you do. If God helps me home, I shall
surely pay you back with the greatest thankt.
The Germans here haye (»dcred an altar-jwce
from me, and wiU give me 110 Rhenish florins
for it, my outlay bring less than five florins.
Within eight days I shall have prepared and
finished my white ground. Then I will com-
mence to paint straightway; for, God willing,
it must be upon the altar a month after Easter.
I hope to save all this money, and oot of it I
intend paying you."

From the next letter, written a month later,
upon the 7th of February 1506, it appears that
Pirkheimer has been vexed not to have heard
from Durer. Diirer begs forgiveness humbly,
"for I have no other friend in the world but
you. Nor can I really believe that you are
angry with me; for I think of you not else-
wise than of a father." He then writes what

70 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

fine people th«e we in Venice, and how
he is esteemed there. "I have many good
friends among the Italians, who warn me not
to eat and drink with the painters. Many
among them are hostile to me, though they
copy my things wherever they can find them;
but afterwards they decry it, and say it isn't
after the antique manner, and therefore not
good. But Gian Bellini openly and highly
praised me in the presence of many noblemen.
He wanted something of mine, and came to me
himself and asked me to paint him something,
and he would buy it. And all people tell me
how pious he is, which prectispoaes me straig^
off in his favour. He is very old, and to this
day remains the best of all, as far as painting
goes. But the thing which pleased me so well
eleven years ago doesn't please me any more"
(Diirer refers to Jacopo de' Barbarj); "and if
I hadn't seen it myself, I wouldn't have believed
any one else. . . . To-day I began the com-
position of my picture: for my hands were so
hard and stiff that I couldn't wwk befwe I had
had them cured."

Upon the 28th of the month Diirer writes
that he has sold all the pictures but one which
he had brought along with him. " I wish stmt

ALBRECHT DCRER 71

cause or other could britij^ you 1 jrc. I am
sure time would pass quickly enough for you.
For there we » lot of very agreeable people
here. And such crowds of Italians come to see
me, that I am compelled occanonally to lude.
The nobiliry are all well-wishers ; but among the
painters few cnly wish me well."

The comn: ssions which Pirkheimer had en-
trusted play an important part in all the letters.
But they cause Diirer much trouble. He writes
that the predous ^tcnet which his friend wants
are to be had much cheaper in Germany; he
is constantly in fear of sharpers, and once he
has been swindled, but friends mediate and he
recovers his money, having merely to "set
up" a fish dinner as a sort of forfeit. An
emerald ring which he sent on was returned
by Pirkhdmer.

Diirer comphuns that his wife doesn't wr \
His experience on the subject of matrimt
seems to have given the impulse wh?ri ae
advises Pirkheimer : " It looks like all the
world as if you had take - wife, i.ook to
it lest you have taken a master."

On the and of April there is a renewed
complaint of the animoMty of the Venetian
painters, who fwced him to pay four florins

72 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

into their "school." "I might have made
much money by this time were it not for
the altar-piece which the Germans have ordered.
For tWs is a very large work, and I cannot
finish it before Whitsuntide. The eighty-five
ducats it brings will all be gone by that time.
I've bought several things, too, and sent some
money home. But, believe me, I do not intend
to leave this place before, with God's help, I'm
in a position to pay you and have a hundred
florins besides. It would be an easy matter, too,
were it not for the Germans' picture. For,
excepting the painters, everybody wishes me
well. Please speak to my mother about my
brother, that she go to Wohlgemuth and ask
him whether he can give him work to do until
I return. I would have gladly uken him along
to Venice. It would have been profitable for
me and him, if merely for the sake of learning
the language. But she was afraid the heavens
might fall down upon him. Please look after
him ; it is a sorry job with the women-folk.
Talk with the boy. ... For myself, I wouldn't
come to grief ; but to suppcnt many is beyond
me. For nobody throws away mouwy"
upon art).

The next letter is full of worry about t ring

ALBRECHT DURER 73

that Diirer has sent, and the receipt of which
Rrkheimer has not yet acknowledged. But
after that the tone of the letters is tottUy
changed. As far as we know, four months
elapse before Diirer writes again, and he has
become a different man. He is elated and
buoyant — he leads off with mock-grandiloquent
tirades in queer Italian, casts all care far away
from him, and is above petty annoyances. "If
those rings don't please you, break them and
throw them away. What, think you, do I care
about such dirt as that! I have grown to be
a nobleman at Venice." But this is all meant
in fun, and he reports conscientiously about
further purchases for Pirkheimer. " My picture
sends greeting, and would give a ducat to be
seen by you. It is good and beautiful in
coloration. I have earned much praise but
little profit. And I have silenced all the
painters, who used to say that I was good in
engraving, but didn't know anything about the
handling of colours. Now everybody says they
have never seen finer colours. My French
cloak sends its best rqpurds, and so does my
Italian coat. Item, the Doge and the Patriarch
have also come to sec my altar-piece." And, on
the 23rd of September 1 506, he ccmtinuet in

74 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
the same strain : " I have finished my altar-piece
and another canvas, such as I've never accom-
plished heretofore. Since you are well ple«ied
with yourself" (this refers to a passage in one of
Pirkheimer's letters), " I for my part don't mind
telling you that there isn't a finer Madonna in
all the country than mine. Just as all the
gentlefolk praise you, so do all the artists laud
my picture. They avow they have never seen
a more exalted and pleasing painting." Then
there follow some remarks about further com-
missions for his fnend, notably about Oriental
carpets— Dfirer can't find a square one, they are
all long and narrow— and he adds that he has
at least four more weeks before him at Venice.
He has some portraits on hand, which he
promised to do. During the time he spent
upon the altar-piece he refused ordert to the
value of 2000 ducats, he says. And he hii
found the first grey hair upon his head, fiom
work and worry.

And now follows the tenth and last of the
letters written to Pirkhcimer, so full of import.
It contains the excessively gross passage about
his own wife, which Dttrer— even if we iMke
thorough allowance for the spirit of the age-
could not have written had he the slightest to

ALBRECHT DORER 75

of afFection left for Agnes. He renders final
account of all his commissions, and says he will
be done with Venice in ten days* time. He is
elated still, but the prospect of having to leave
these surroundings depresses him mightily, and
the famous passage betrays this. " I shall ride
to Bologna for the sake of art, some secrets in
Perspective which somebody there is going to
teach me. I shall stay there about eight or ten
days, and then ride back to Venice. Then I will
make for home, by the next carrier. OA, how shall
I starve firr lack of Ais sun I here lama gentkman^
at home a parasite ! "

In Venice he had, towards the last, become the
■ivoured of fortune, wkh a full light of fame
turned upon him. At Nuremberg an artist was
at bottom a craftsman, scarcely better than the
shoemaker and the tailor; he feels that there
he will, to say the least, again sink into a daily
routine of drudgery.

The altar-piece, so often referred to in these
letters, is the " Feast of the Rosary," or adoration
of the Madonna, by Maximilian, &c., now at
Prague, belonging to the Strahow Convent th«e.
Emperor Rudolf II. prixed it so highly that he
had it carried upon the shoulders of four strong
men from Venice to Prague. On being trans-

76 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

ported to Vienna it suffered greatly, and again in
the course of the nineteenth century. By about
1 860 it was in a very bad condition, and was at
that time " restored " by one, Anton Gru«, who
ruthlessly bedaubed Dttrer's nMSterpiece «kh
his own iorid colours, scraped the face down to
the panel, and painted in his insipid daughter's
portrait. An old copy, at Vienna, probably gives
us a better idea of the pic ire as Dttrer painted
it than the wreck of the original now at Prague.
Other paintings of the time — ^for example, " The
Crucifixion " »t Dresden, " The Portwit rf a
Young Man " at Hampton Court, " The Madonna
with the Finch " and " The portrait of a Young
Woman," both at Berlin— convey to us an excel-
lent impression of the picturesque style Dflrer
had developed into at Venice, especially the fiat
coloration, of which he is deservedly proud.

The general feeling of elation which had ecMte
over him towards the end of his Venetian sojourn
was sufficiently well founded. For he had guned
the admiration of the Signoria to such an extent
that they offered him a yearly pension of two
hundred ducats if he would settle in Venice.

Upon his return to Nuremberg DOrer took up
engraving again, and painted the life-nze ** Adim
and Eve" now at Madrid. These are rsslly

ALBRECHT dORER 77

studies in human proportion, and his work »t
Bologna may have furnished the direct impetus £«•
them. They are ungularly man painter-like than
the engraved " Adam and Eve" of 1501, which
were likewise studies in proportion. In the en-
graving, however, -rt is almost Ijst sight of
beneath the display of science.

Diirer then received two commissions for
paintings, the me for a jncture of the " Martyr-
dom of the Ten Thousand Christians in Pbnia "
from Elector Frederick the Wise, the other from
a wealthy merchant of Frankfort-on-the-Main,
Jacop Heller, for a " Coronation of the Virgin."
" The Martyrdom " is now at Vienna ; of " The
Coronation" the centre-piece was lost by fire (1674)
at Munich, and only the wings are preserved at
Frankfort. But these wings were executed in the
main by pupils. Hellw, as far as we know, visited
Dttrer early in 1 507 at Nuremberg and bespoke
the picture ; it was not before August 1509 that
it was sent to him. Several letters from Durcr
to Heller tell us all about the history of ♦he
work.

On the aSth of August 1507, Dtirer writes
that he has bought the panel, had it prepared

and grounded, but cannot begin to work upon
it before he has finished the Elector's picture, as

78 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

he doesn't like to work upon too many things at
the same time. The Elector's picture it more
than half finished, and Diirer promises to deliw
a punting to Heller, such as not many men
can do.

On the 19th of March, in the fol' owing yetr,
Diirer writes that the Elector's picture will oe
finished in fourteen days. The outer wings of
Heller's altar are already sketched. They sr;
to be en grisaille. The centrc-iriece he will aU^w
no one to touch but himself. He further meSit
that, if it were not to please Heller, he wouldn't
paint it all, and never again will he be persuaded
to take an order of this kind. The Elector's
picture has taken him a year to do, and the 280
florins that were paid him for it weren't enough,
after deducting expenses, to pay for lut Iw^
during that time.

Now follows an interesting letter, bitt flne
which vexed Heller greatly. Diirer reports thit
he has already finished two coatings of paint,
and there are to be five or six in all. Evidently
the altar was executed in some kind of tempen
technique which necessitates painting in various
Uyers. As he prc^esses, however, DUrer ^
covers that he'll never be able to see his own agiin
if he continues the way he has begun. He wiko

ALBRECHT DOrER 79

that if he really is to finish a first-class piece of
work he must have 200 florins. Even that isn't
half of what he would ask for a new order, if
such a one should turn up. If Heller, how-
ever, doesn't want to pay more than the 130
Rhenish florins originally stipulated, DOrer will
still paint him something worth far more than
♦ .c price paid.

This aggravates Heller, as he supposes DOrcr
is trying to break the agreement and force a
higher price out of him. Diirer tries to justify
his conduct in a long letter of the 4th of
November 1508. He writes that he hasn't the
slightest doubt that all connoisseurs will value the
painting at 300 florins when it is once finished.
He makes use of the vt^-y best colours, and his
ouday on ultramarine alone amounts to twenty
florins. He estinutes the time that it will Uke
him to finish the centre-piece at thirteen months,
to say the least. He denies that he could ever
have been insane enough to promise to finish the
picture "with all the greatest care possible."
Any single head " finished with the greatest care
posuble" would take lum half a year, and at
that rate the Heller picture couldn't be finished
within a lifetime. Besides, it would be a waste
of energy to "finish" a large altar-piece after

8o STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

this fashion. After all things are said, Helkr,
he supposes, doesn't want Dfirer to low money
on his work, and he, on the other hand, dceai't
mA to have it reported that he doesn't stick to
the fulfilment of his contract. He b^s Heller
to have patience pending the completion of the
altar-piece. He feels sure that he will like it,
and all unpleasantness will be resolved.

In the previous letter he had asked Heller
whether he couldn't find a purchaser for the
" Madonna " which Heller saw in Dflrer's hcoie.
It's a thing he wouldn't do again under 50 florim
as an order ; but now that he has »t lying upcm
his hands, he'll sell it for thirty, and, rather than
not sell it, let it go for twenty-five. In this
letter he writes to Heller not to trouble any more
about the '* Madonna," as the Bishop of Bresltn
has in the meantime bought it for 72 florins.

Once more, towards the end of March 1509,
Diire: .sks Heller to be patient. He has worked
most conscientiously upon the picture, and used
up 24 florins worth of paint. He wouldn't
undertake another such for 400 florins. He has
been asked to sell it elsewhere (at a profit), bat
he will remain true to his agreement.

The continued broad hints that Heller is re-
ceiving at least twice the value of his paymeitt.

ALBRECHT DCRER 8i

grate upon the Frwkfort merchuit'i wnnbiUties,
and the result is some acrimmuom corre^poo-
dence. It is easy to gather from Diircr's replies
what Htiler must have written. In the end
Diircr agrees to send him the picture to Frank-
fort, and let him have it for lOO florins less than
Diirer can get for it elsewhere. Heller's friend-
ship, he says, outvalues the loss of lOO florins;
but, if Heller doesn't wwit it, Dflrer is ready to
take it back. He has pamtcd it carefully five
or six times, and even after it was ostenably
finished he has gone over it again twice. For he
wants it to last 500 years, if kept dean. He
begs Heller to have it kept clean, and not to
allow them to sprinkle it with holy water. Even
now he cannot withhold repeating hb <rft-pro-
daimed losses at lius ksiKl of wotk. If he were
to go on pamting like this he would soon turn
beggar. So he will return to engraving. Had
he stuck to that, he says, he would now be richer
by a thousand florins. He tells Heller how the
altar must be hung, and gives directions as to
careful treatment. No <»c most be aUowed to
varnish it. In a year or two he lumself will
come to Frankf(»-t to varnish it again with his
own particular varnish ; all others are yellow and

would spoil the painting. From the last letter,

r

82 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

dated October 12, 1509, we learn that Heller,
when the picture arrived at last, was quite de-
lighted with it. So everything ended in harmoay
at last.

Diirer now turned with especial aaudtuty to

woodcut and engraving, as he had predicted he
would in his letter to Heller. The followii
years rounded off the small woodcut " Passion,"
the large woodcut " Passion," and the engraved
" Passion," besides giving birth to many of tie
best-known other prints, such as the **St. Jcfome
in hb Cell,'* the " Melancolia,*' and the ** Kai^
Death, and Devil," the dry-p«nt "St Jmut
under the Willow-Tree," &c.

For the chapel of a home fcr old men
in Nuremberg, founded by E. Schildkrot and
Mathew Landauer, Diirer painted at this time
a beautiful **A11 Saints" altar-piece, for whidi
he des^ned m <Mriginal frame. Hb luUm
coloration is blended with Gorman dengn and
thoroughness. The picture was bought, 158J,
by Emperor Rudolph II., and is now in Vienna;
the frame is still to be seen in Nuremberg «
the Germanic Museum.

The dates on drawings and manuscripts hj
Diirer show us that, from about 15 10 onimd,
two things were to engage his attention to su^

ALBRECHT DORER 83

a degree as to hinder his development into a
great painter, the possibility of which is vouched
for by the "AU Suats" if hy nothing else.
One of these two things is lus sdentific research,
the other his work for Emperor Maximilian.

The former resulted in a book on the "Art
of Perspective" (issued 1525), a second book
"On the Fortification of Cities, Castles, and
Villages" (1527)1 and "Four Books on the
Proportions of the Hunum Body*' (15*8).
Durer was by nature meditadrely di^wsed ; but
he had not received an education which enabled
him to grapple successfully with scientific prob-
lems. Perhaps it would be better to say that
on account of this failure he was unable to
grasp his ideas definitely, and, above all, to
express himself clearly. His books (and manu-
script sketches for them) are troublesome read-
ing, full of contradictions, scarcely ever lucid
in their deductions and phraseolt^y. Upon the
whole, we must lament this side of his activity
as a waste of energy. He had received the first
impetus thereto from Leonardesque traditions,
and especially from the painter Jacopo de'
Barbarj. That he went to Bologna expressly to
pursue such studies we have already learned
above.

84 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Here and there are to be found some most
interesting and also some uncommonly fine state-
ments. For example: But life in nature lets you
recognise the truth as to these things. There-
fort lock at her diligently, defer to htr, tad
do not depart from nature in the bdief fim
you yourself can invent anything better; then
you would be led astray. For, truly, art is
encompassed by nature; whoever can tear lur
out holds her as his own." Or, " As for ai it
(your work) is contrary to nature, so far it b
bad ; ■ or, " But in auch thing* tempered dftcti
are the moat beautiful, although the othcn,
thoae full of atrong contraat, oKite more wonder,
yet they are not all to pleasant," &c. D&er's
diffidence as to his own success in these sciaj-
tific works finds various and constant expression.
Almost every precept he gives is followed hij
some sort of reservation to the effect tl»t ttaw
are alto otho* ways of attaining this, and ht ii,
aa an author, justly more modest th«i m ta
artist If the last aim of all his scientific work
is to discover what beauty is, then what ebe
but a confession of his own weakness as a
theorist is that famous often-quoted sentence <rf
his : " But what Beauty really is, that I caawt
tell!"

U S'lORlES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Here and there arc to be found some most
interesting and also some uncommon' v fine stare-
ments. For example : But Me in r.raure lets you
recogni-t: fu- rnr.h ;is to these thing'*. There-
fore look i.t i.cr aiMpetulv. defer to her, tnd
d^i '>ot >:ip.!:t; rroin nature in the belief that
vou uurself can invent anything better; then
V.,, «uuUi W ;e.i astrav. For, truly, art i»
... ..-^n^^-v Vv r.*tutc:t ^vh..i-ver can rear W

.,t h.^: is h.- *5. r^.^ own.' Or. " As far as
,r;..ar v->.rk) -s .-ontrarv ro nature, s-. far it is
" 'Bar m wuch 'hings tempered tS»»
Are the m. .t !>ea.iiU"ul, although the othm,m
-ho ^e Kill of strong contra.<si, excite more woair
vet they are not all so pleasain," Afc I>3rB'f
aiffiJence as to his own success in these %cmr
tihc woiltst\nds various and coir^r^nt cK:.rcs«or,
Alm. si everv prer-pr he gives is roUowed h
ut re^^crv:' on to the effect that tip
1 other wav^ r'f attaining this, an4
luth.-.r. iu'itiv more mildest than ii^
'.f i n, n:- aim of all his scientific w<lll
, what hciuty is, then what
4 . .^fcssii-.!'. Of' his own weaknes* ss ♦

hr.' '.v. 4 K-.-uu.v really is, that I ctnm

tell :

-.I 'nif

•«u:

POKTKAIT OK THK K.MPKKOK MAMMll.l.'

ALBRECHT DORER 85

"This is Emperor Maximilian, him have I,
Albrecht Durer, portrayed at Augsburg up
in his little room in the castle, in the year
151 8, on Monday after St. John the Baptist's
day" (28th June 1518), is the legend which
Diirer wrote on a drawing now in the Albertina
at Vienna. From it, principally, he did the oil
portrait of this same prince, finished in the
ensuing year, and now in the Imperial Gallery
at Vienna, which is the most painter-Uke of all
his portraits, and may well be placed side by
side with the " AH Saints " altar-piece. Chrono-
logically they form the nucleus about which
Diirer's work for Maximilian is to be grouped.
The great "Triumphal Arch" dates from the
year 1515; the "Triumphal Chariot,** which
forms the piice de HHstoHU in the long triumf^
procession, a large series of woodcuts glorifying
Maximilian, dates from the year 1522. Besides
these two there are some woodcut portraits and
single sheets, all connected with Maximilian,
and it is possible that Diirer helped to forward
some of the other fine-art schemes of the
Emperor, although none of the dengns actttftUy
executed is attributed to him.

Maximilian I. commissioned a large number
of woodcut smes, in which he and his

86 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

house were to be glorified. The " humanist "
liturati of his court mapped out pompous alle-
gorical schemes, which Diirer and his confrhra
had to clothe in artistic garb as best they could.
The most pretentious among these schemes wis
the " Triumphal Arch," consisting of ninety-two
woodcuts, which, when pieced together and
mounted, measure about 9 feet by 6. The main
arch discovers Maximilian enthroned, his pedi-
gree, and the arms ci the 102 countries he ruled
over. The smaller arches, right and left, are
decorated with twenty-four representations of his
most famous battles and achievements. There
are, besides, pictures illustrating the Emperor's
various virtues and noble deeds, numerous por-
traits of his relatives, &c., and, finally, a great
deal of purely ornamental decoration.

The "Triumphal Chariot" is composed of
eight elaborately finished sheets. From the
year 1514 on, Diirer illuminated more than
fifty pages of the famous Prayer Book of
Maximilian with pen drawings.

Two notes written by Diirer to a friend, C.
Kress, and to the Burgomaster and Council of
Nuremberg, tell us what return he recdved for
all this work.

To Kress he writes on the 30th of July 1515 :

ALBRECHT DORER 87

" Firstly I pray you to find out from Stabius
whether he has had any success with His Im-
perial Majesty in my behalf, and how my aifiiir
stands. If he has not had any, will you please
try to do something for me with H.I.M. ? And
especially remind His Imperial Majesty that I
have served him now for three years, neglecting
my interests meanwhile, and if I hadn't been so
diligent, the graceful piece of work {i.e. 'The
Triumphal Arch') would never have come to
be finished, and I consequently beg H. Imp.
Maj. to reward me with 1 00 Florins. And,
know too, that I have done many another
drawing for H. Imp. Majesty beyond the
' Triumph.' "

The Emperor wanted to free him from all
taxation, but the G}uncU at Ntiremberg naturally
objected to thb, since they did not see why they
should be held to pay the Empercur's tnlls. From
Diircr's letter to the Council, written on the 27th
of April 1519, we glean that he voluntarily
relinquished his claim, and he was rewarded in
the end by an annual payment of 100 florins
out of Maximilian's Nuremborg revenues. Diirer
reverts to the matter in a letter, written in the
beginning of 1520, to Georg Spalatin. There
he writes, am<M>g other things : " Item, I am

88 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

sending my most worshipful Lord {i.e. Elector
Frederick, whose chaplain Spalatin was) three
impressions of a plate which I have engraved at
his desire, the portrait of his Lordship of
Mayence. I have sent His Grace the Elector his
plate (portrait) with 200 proofs, which I de-
dicated to him, in return for which the elector
treated me most graciously. His Grace made
me a present of 200 florins in gold and twenty
yards of Damast for a coat. I accepted this in
joy and gratitude, all the more so as I wu at
that time in need. For His Imperial Majesty
of renowned memory, who died too soon for me,
had indeed the bounty to recompense my long
trouble, worry, and work. But the hundred
florins to be paid annually until my end, out of
the city revenues, and which I received during
His Majesty's lifetime, these the Council no
longet want to pay me."

The reason why the Council of Nuremberg
suspended the payment of this pension was,
probably, because they first wanted to ascertain
whether Charles V., Maximilian's successor,
would confirm the grant.

It has been supposed that the principal object
of Diirer's tour to the Netherlands, which will
occupy us next, was to look after the confirraa-

ALBRECHT DORER 89

tion of this grant personally. He kept a journal
during his voyage, manuscript copies of which
have been handed down to us. It was in the
main a diary of expenses, but often he discusses
things and people that he has seen and events
that happened.

Before entering upon the details of this journey
wc must just make a note of some valuable
information about Diirer during the few years
previous to his setting out upon it, which we owe
to Lorenz Behaim, a canon of Bamberg, who con-
veys it in his letters to W. Pirkheimer. This
Behaim had sojourned for a long time at Rome,
and had become intimate with Pope Alexander VI,
He is rather given to taking Diirer lightly,
and, in a mild manner, pokes fun at him on
account of his vanity. Diirer wore a full beard,
carefully attended to, which was an uncommon
thing at that time. According to Behaim he must
have been somewhat of a " gay Lothario " in his
day ; several passages in the Venetian corre-
spondence corroborate this view. Behaim set up
a horoscope for Diirer. In the fall of the year
1 5 17 Diirer visited Bamberg and put up at
Behaim's house. Writing to Pirkheimer, in
October, Behaim reports that Diirer has made
portraits of the Bishop of Bambeig and of his

90 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

jester, Sella. "Diirer is always invited out, so
that he is never at home for lunch. He ms
at the Bbhop's to-d»y, portrayed Sella, and
mil portray the Bishop himself. This evenbg
he (Kiies with the Bishop ; he occupies the place
of honour at the table." On the next day
Behaim writes : " I would like to write mon
about Diirer, but he is always disturbing me by
his chaffing the cook." On the iith of th«
month he reports great honours which have been
bestowed upon Diirer. Two years later he
mentions that Diirer intends "visiting England,
or that miserable country Spain. But he had
better abandon that project. He is no longer
a young man, and one of delicate bu;ld. He
might not be able to stand the stnun of the
journey, let al<me the difference of climate. Smee
he has no children to provide for, let hm rest
satisfied with his income, and select the fulfil-
ment of a quiet life in the service of God."

But the spirit of wandering had again seized
Diirer, and, though nothing came either of
his English or his Spanish project, the special
inducement already noted to go to the Neths^
lands was {nrobably a meat welconoe excuse nnee
it came just at a time when Dttrer was banii^
to travel anywhere.

ALBRECHT DCrER 91

Diirer set out with his wife and a maid,
on the 12th of July 1520, for Bamberg, where
he presented a painting of • ** Madmutt " and
some prints to the Bishop, who reooved him
graciously and granted him letters patent, with
♦he help of which he might proceed along the
river Main exempt from duties. The trip by
boat took eight days to Frankfort, another to
Mayence, and twenty-three in all (including the
resting days in the towns) to Cologne. Here
he meets his counn Nicholas and is fhed in
the Franciscan Convent. On the 28th the
journey is continued down the Rhine and Maes ;
Antwerp is reached on the 2nd of August.
" Then we put up at Jobst Planckfeldt's, and on
the very same evening rhe Fugger agent, Bern-
hard Stecher by name, invited me, and gave us
a dunty meal ; but my wife ate at the inn. . . .
Item, on &turday after Vincula Petri mine host
brought me to the Mayor's house at Antwerp,
newly built, large beyond measure and well
arranged, with unusually fine, big rooms, and
many of them, a beaudfully ornamented tower,
a very large garden, in fine, so magnificent
a house as I have not seen anywlwre in Ger«
many. . . . And on Sunday, St. Oswald's
day, the painters invited me along mth the

92 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

wife and maid to their hall, and »11 was laid
out with ulver plate and other predou* deooca>
ti(mt and tuperfine fare. All their woneofbOt
were also present. Andul wasledtotabltienqF-
body got up at both sides, just as when great
lords are led in. And among them there were
quite famous men, of name, who all behaved
inost respectfully, bowing low before me. And
they said they would do everythi ig, as well m
they knew how, to please me. And u I «n
sitting honoured thus among them, • mciaeagv
of the Council of Antwerp came to me widi
four cans of wine, and offered me their respects
and assured me of their goodwill." And others
pay their respects in a similarly flattering manner.
He yiuts Quentin Matnjs* house, and Joadwn
Patenier places his assisant and wotkix^ matarid
at DOrer's disposal. Dfirer admires the extran^
gant decorations of the Antwerp gild prepared for
Charles V.'s entry. Sebald Fischer improves the
shining hour (viz. the advertisement that Durer's
presence affords), and buys of him, for retailing
purposes, sixteen sets o£ the "little Faanoa,"
thirty-two of the '* Large Passion," " Apocdypie,'
and "Life ofMary," six of the "Engr»ved FkssioB,"
ami a great number of the single prints, whidi
are sold indiscriminately according to their MS

•^K ;••!!, S 'Xv GERMAN AKTi.Vi

•.' ;ff in.i nnivi their hai', i:iJ ail
i;: uij; ..c'vor an,'. ,*i'er (>r!:i."v'i; -i .

aP''! lupcrfi.'u- t'lrc A [ rheir women? -
wi-re ah j prc?ei'f . An^i as 1 \va5 led to tahie, e-c*
' ".v t: -; w;- .;• 1). -.r -^ii't,.'-, iust uii when g,-*,-
■ ■ ■' i'r..)n^ them f here

m'J ' ■ ■■ ■ • \v:^^ a): hehj^c

' ■ ' ' ■■ ■, ivi();e i '- A- -

\ • ■ V'. t hi'icr, a?: v." n

'•'■''> ■■ > . "A, • l-viac me. And as I vtt

•i"; ri.' >• nc'.ir. j jii-i .'m.nnr them, a inC9 f r.^*^-
*hc .,■•,;!■!.•:! )f An^^wvrp -.arae ro nw" w«|
I .'ur ens .1 '.I '.m . r-r. ' ffrt-j-.-.i ms the (v-st^.-\
-i.^'ireu ■ ! !" ';' . ■-::! " .t^-^
.r, --.a.': ;.:<-;'..r»- , '.;.niij.rlv fl.incrii'u' 'i;nrri?y
Ke v-.sitt ' .i.-tu.;i M,.;?ijs' houS'., atvj Joa n p
Patrr-.e. riaL.;s fv.s .issistant nnd w^rkiiis nu
.t I •i-rers iiii^jsa!. Diircr admires the exi' t^
;;Ujt lucnr-f.it . 'f rh Antwerp giUi prepare-; f«
■ : ^ ' .f"' ^.m': I'ischer iinprovt* r*;
■' . 4 ; .irr.r.en.ent that I)-- -

f ivs him f ir n ■

-ci. J,'" Che "Li:tle Pi.si ■'

' " i-argc f'.i-rsion," " Apoc^lvi-''
'••d ■ i ■ ^* ;rv, six ■ f thi- '• l-;ngraved Pasr,t'.-»
" • ' '1 .ni'.r.T t.t ?hc single prints, whj
if? it)."' i»i.r'ni;ria:e! V vi-cnrding to their «■

ALBRECHT dORER 93

as half sheets and quarter sheets. Diircr draws
likenesses of a great number of people to whom
he is indebted, and gives these drawings to the
sitters; also many of his prints to friends.

On the other hand, he receives numerous
presents, and turns into a collector of curios
as did Rembrandt about a century later. " The
Rent-warden gave me a child's head on canvas.
And a wooden weapon of Calcutta, and also
one of those light wood reeds (bambus). And
Tomasin gave me a hat made of serried elder-
berry-stones. . • . Master Erasmus (of Rotter-
dam, the famous humanist), gave me a Spanish
mantle and three male portraits."

"Item, Our Lady's Church at Antwerp is
extremely large, so that many different Masses
can be going on at once in it, none disturbing
the other. The Church boasts of much vener-
able paraphernalia and stone-sculptures, and
above all a fine tower. And there are the best
musicians which one can have anywhere. I was
also in the rich Abbey of St. Michael, which
has the most precious triforium of carved stone
that I have ever seen, and exquisite stalls in
the choir. And at Antwerp they don't econo-
mise in these things, for there there is money
enough." Even he had to give a tip occasionally

STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

when he wanted to see a painting in a church
which was not generally on view. On August
19 Diirer sees the w<mderful {vocestton in
honour of the Vii^n, in which all the trades and
gilds took part, and which took two hourt to
pass his house. He gives a short account of
it, but says : " There were so many things that 1
couldn't describe them all in a whole book; so
I'll let it rest there."

** On Sunday after St. Bartholomew's day I
rode with Master Tomaun from Antwerp to
Malines, where we lay over night ; and I iavtttd
Master Conrad and a painter with him to supper.
And this Master Conrad is the good sculptor
whom Lady Margaret engages. From Malines
we rode via the hamlet Vilvorde, and arrived tt
Brussels Monday noon. ... I ate with ^
coundllors at Brussels, . . . and I gave my letter
of introduction, which my Lord of Bamberg had
written to the Markgrave John, and made him
a present of the engraved ' Passion ' therewith,
to make him think of me. ... In the Town
Hall at Brussels, in the Golden Chamber, I saw
the four painted subjects which the great MaMcr
Rc^er has done. In the King's house at ftrundi.
out at the back, I saw the fountuns, labyrinth,
and deer-park; these are jolly things, whi«h

ALBRECHT DORER 95

please me, like a paradise, better than anything
I've ever seen. Item, Erumus is the little man
who set up my petition" (concerning the con-
firmation of the grant ; see above), " at Master
James Bonisius' for me. Item, at Brussels there
is a very fine Town Hall, large and full of
beautiful carvings, with a magnificent open-work
tower. ... I have also seen the things which
they have brought for the King out of the new
gold country — a aun entirely of gold a fiithom
broad, ar.d a moon of silver just as large. Again,
two chambers full of their armour and all
kinds of weapons — breastplates, artillery, strange
shields, queer dress, bedclothes, and various won-
derful things for sundry usage, which are much
more beautiful to look at than outright marvels.
These things were all cosdy, so that they had
been estimated at a hundred thousand fl<Mins
value. And in all my life I've never seen any-
thing that so delighted my heart as these things ;
for I perceived therein marvellously artful things,
and I was surprised at the subtle ingenuity of the
people in strange countries. And I can't express
myself about the things I had there. I saw many
a fine thing bendes at Brussels, and especially a
big fishbone, as if one had made it of masonry ;
and it was a fathom long and very thick, and

96 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

weighed 15 cwt., and had «uch a shape " (Diirer's
drawing has been lost), " and was at the back of
the fish's head,

" And 1 also was in the house of the Coast
of Nassau, whidi is so magnificoitly boilt lad
beautifully ornamented. Item, Lady Mstgiiet"
(Governess of the Lowlands) "sent for me «
Brussels, and promised me to speak for me with
King Charles. . . . Item, at the house of the
Count of Nassau I saw the fine picture in the
chapel which Master Hugh" (van der Goei)
" has done. And I saw the two handsome, l«|e
hsUs, and all the tressures and the great W,
which might hold fifty people. And I also m
the big rock which the storm hurled down on
the field next to my Lord of Nassau. This house
is situated up high, and from it there is the
most astonishingly beautiful view, and I doa't
believe there is anything like it in aU Genwi
countries. Item, Master Ben»rd" (vaa Oili^
*• the painter, invited me, and set out so delicious
a banquet that I don't believe it can have been
done for 10 florins. . . . And to Erasmus Rotero-
damus I made a present of my engraved ' Passion.'
... I have made a second portrait-drawing of
Erasmus Roterodamus."

"Item, Ruderigo gave me another pirrot"

ALBRECHT DCrER 97

(He had already given one to Durer's wife.) . . .
" Item, I gave a stiver for the printed description
of the • Entry at Antwerp,' where the King was
received m glorious triumph. There the trium-
phal arches were decorated with plays, great
gaiety, anu dumb shows of nude maidens, such
as I have seen only few." Another "sight"
that he speaks about is the giant Brabo. The
Bolognese painter, Tommaso Vinddor, tells him
that all of Rafielo Saati's things have been
scattered. He draws a portrait of DOrer (which
was engraved later, in 1649, by A. Stock), and
Diirer gives him a complete set of his prints;
also a second set, for which he is to receive
RafFaello prints in return.

On the 4th of October 1520 Dttra: starts for
a seven weeks' tour to Aix-la-Chapelle, to find
the Emperor there. " At Aix-ht-Chapelle I saw
the proportiooed columns, with their fine cafHtals
of porphyry, green and red, which Charlemagne
had brought thither out of Rome and inserted.
They are really executed according to Vitruvius*
writings." He inspected all the relics, and made
a drawing of the Mimter. "On the 23rd d
October they crowned Emperor Charles at Aix-
la-Chapelle, where I saw all splendid magaificenoe,
such as nobody who lives among us ever saw

98 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

finer." At last Durer can write : " On Monday
after St. Martin's Day (i 2th of Nov. i^io),
after much trouble tnd work, the cdnfiruAtiM
of the Emperor for the Coundl »t Nuremberg
cune to hind." Via Cologne and the Rhine he
retumt to Antwerp to fetch his wife ; but nearly
three-quarters of a year pass before he really
starts for home. The seven weeks he was gone,
his wife and the maid's keep cott seven crowm,
and she had bought things for four further floriai.
« On St. Martin's Day some one cut off my
wife's purse, in Our Lady's Church at Antwerp,
in wWch there were ii florins. The purse and
what else there was in it was also worth a florin,
and there were some keys in it."

Diirer hears of a tremendous whale that hu
been washed ashore near Ziericksee, and D«ier
would like to see it. On Decunber yd k
starts out for a trip to Zeeland. From Berghcn-
op-Zoom the trip was continued by boat, and
he passed flooded 'iistricts, where merely the
tops of roofs aprv-ared above the waters. At
Arnemuijden he had a serious accident. Wken
he was about to disembark, a large vessd i»
up against the boat, so that the ropes hnte
tnd they were cast adrift. No one but he, i
Nuremberg friend, two old women, a boy, lai

ALBRECHT DORER 99

the boatman were on board, and a hurricane
suddenly sprang up, fordng them out into the
open. The sailors were on shore; nobody
dared to come out and help them. Diirer
quieted the frantic boatman, and told him to
reflect what had best be done. They then raised
a small sail md managed to pull up to the
shore again. In Middelburg he admired the
Town Hall, and the choir stalls in the St.
Nicholas Abbey, and other beautiful works of
art. By th:: time they reached Zierlcksee, the
flood— Fortuna, as Dftrer calls it — ^had akeady
washed the whale away.

Back at Antwerp again he dines several times
in the company of Erasmus. Like our modem
travellers he has to give a tip of a sdver in
order to get up on the high cathedral towo*.
His accounts show that he sold not only his
own paintings, drawings, and prints, but also
work by other masters — ^for insonce, fine prints
by Hans Baldung.

Upon the 6th of April Diirer started upon
another tour in the company of the painter
Jan Ptevost. He vinted Bruges, where he
admired the {wntings of Rogier van dor
Weijden, Hugo van der Goes, and Jan van
Ejjck, and the so<alled " Madonna of Bruges/'

loo STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

which he speaks of positively as the wwk of
Michelangelo Buonarotti. The Puaten* Gild
honour lum with a great banquet and a pft
wine. Then he yiaits Ghent, where he ia ftitd
unulariy by the painters. He is enthusiasdc
about the famous Van Eijck altar-piece, which
he styles "John's panel" (thus not mentioning
Hubert). But the lions whic'i happen to be
kept at Ghent interest him scarcely less, and he
sketches one of them.

Returned to Antwerp he falk ill. ** Item, m
the third wedt after Easter (April 14-20), I fell
into a high fever, with fits of fainting and he^i-
ache. And lately, when I was in Zeeland, a
strange illness came upon me, such as I have
never heard of from any man, and this illi»s
I still am sufiicring frwn." Dttrer drew a piciaR
of himself later on, with his finger poiati^
towards the region where the spleen is tooted,
and wrote on the sketch : " There where the
yellow spot is, at which the finger b poiadag,
there I have pains."

Upon the 5th of June he seems gradually to
be thinking of returning home ; on tWs day, <
any rate, he sends a great bale of goods ttl bi
taken home by the carrier Cunz Me» of
Sdilaudersdorf. On the next day he go* M

ALbRECHT DORER ioi

Malines, where the painters honour him as they
did everywhere else, and where he visits the
Archduchess Margaret, /ie does not approve
of his portrait of Emperor ManmUian, which
he really had intended to make her a pieaent
of. He is, qmte the a)ntrary, very enthusiastic
about her miniatures, puntings, and books.
Shortly after his return to Antwerp, he
writes : " Master Luke, the one who engraves
on copper, invited me ; he is quite a little man,
a native of Leiden in Holland ; he happened to
be at Antwerp."

Just as he was on the point of departing, on
the and of July, the King of Denmark sends
for Diirer. He eats with the King, and makes
a portrait-drawing of him. The personal appear-
ance of the King, and his courage — with only
three retainers he boldly rode through the
enemy's country — were greatly admired. In his
following DQrer ^jMroceeds to Brussels, and
witnesses the ceremonies of the meeting of
Emperor, King, and Archduchess, enlivened by
fine banquets. To the second of these, tendered
by the King, Diirer is personally invited by his
Majesty ; he then paints the King's portrait, for
which he recoyes tlurty flanns.

On the 1 2th of July he leaves defini^y for

102 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

h< 'e. Cologne is retched on the 15th, ud

there the diary stops.

After his return to Nuremberg EMirer drew
some few designs for woodcuts, engraved only
five portraits and three small plates of apostki,
and painted probably not more than htlfe-
dozen pictures. The most important of that
were— beades the MufFel and Holzschuher por-
traits, both at Berlin— the " Four Apostles," also
called the "Four Temperaments," now at Munich.
These " Four Apostles " Diirer painted for the
city of Nuremberg. Some time before the mddk
of October, in the year 1524, he had petttiowd
the Mumcipal Council of his native dty w&
the following letter:—

♦'After n»ny years I have, through no end
of labour and with the help of God, earned
and put by as much as a thousand Rhenish
florins, which I would now very much likt to
invest for my maintenance. Although I know
that it is not custonury nowadays with yw
Honours to take up much money at the rate
of one florin for twenty fi.e. 5 per cent,
interest), as has already been signified to other
people than myself and refused them, yet in
spite of my misgivings about approaching you
in this nutter, I am moved by my want, sad

ALBRECHT DORER 103

above all by the favourable disposition which,
as I have frequently noticed, your Honours h»vc
towards me, also by circuiMUncet which 1 tm
tbout to relate— to tolidt your Honours in this
wise notwithstanding. For, your Honours will
well know, how obedient, willing, and con-
scientious I have shown myself heretofore,
above many other persons here, in the execution
of such affairs as your Honours entrusted to me,
and that when Members of the Council ot com-
monity, were in need of my help, art, or work,
I served crftener for nothing .han for a money
consideration. And I have, as I -^y write
with truth, throughout all the thirt, i s that
1 have remained at home, not had 500 florins
worth of work in this town, wluch is a trifle
and shameful, and of which not a fifth part
will have been real profit; rather, the little
1 have, which God knows I had to work hard
enough for, was earned off Princes, Lords,
and other foreign people, so that I am really
only spending here what I have earned abroad.
Your Honours doubtless will Hnow that the hte
Emperor Maximilian, of revered memory, wanted
of his own accord to set me free (of taxation)
in this city many years ago. But after several
of the Elders of the Council, who dealt with

104 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

me about the ttter, advised me, I voluntarily
relinquished t privilege, so that the rights,
customs, and prerogatives of the Council, my
masters, should not be impwred. Again, the
Signorie at Venice, nineteen years ago, deand
to keep me and wanted to confer a yearly
pension of 200 ducats upon me. And similarly
the Council of Antwerp, recently when I was in
the Lowlands, wanted to give me yearly a salary
of three hundred Philipps florins, free me of tfce
guild and present mc with a nicely built hoii«;
and at both places they wanted over and abovs
this, to pay for every single thing that I might
work for the city. All of which I declined out
of love for your Honours and for this city as
my native place, and I chose to live with your
Honours in moderate circumstances ratho* tlm
be esteemed for much and made rich in othir
towns. And this then is my very dutiful pid*
tion to your Honours, that you, considering all
these things, will take my thousand florins, which
I could well place with other safe and sound
companies here and elsewhere, but which I not-
withstanding would like best to leave with your
Honours, and out of particular graciousnesi
give me fifty florins a year interest on them, so
that I, with my wife, who are both of us grow

ALBRECHT DORER 105

ing old, weak, and unable to do work as the
days go by, on account of which we require a
decent mamtenance all the more, may enjoy
your H(mour»' particular favour and kindness
as we have done until now."

The petition was granted, and this may have
been one of the reasons to induce Diirer to
dedicate what he deemed the crowning work
of his life, the "Four Apostles," to his native
city. The letter with which he sccompanied
the two panels runs thus: "Although 1 have
for some time intended to present to your
Honours one of my modest efforts, I have
been prevented from carrying out this plan,
because of the unworthiness of my work, which,
I know, ought not to have dared to show itself
in your presence. Howevtr, having rectntly
painted a panel snd devoted more care to it
than to any other wwk, I esteem nobody more
fit to keep it in memory of me than your
Honours. Therefore I beg to proffer it here-
with, begging you most humbly and earnestly,
graciously to accept my little present with favour,
and be and remun my esteemed, well disposed
Masters, u I have found you in all matter^ here-
tofore. To deserve which, on the part of your
Honours,! shall in all humility continue to strive."

io6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Diirer selected texts from the New Testament
for these pictures, which Neudorffer executed.
They reflect the religious excitement of the
times, and contain a plea for Lutheraniam as well
as a condemnation of Anabaptism. At hean
Diirer inclined to Luther. To Spalatin he
wrote : And if God helps me so as to come
to Doctor Martinus Luther, then I will try to
take his portrait most carefully and engrave it,
so as better to preserve the memory of this
Christian man, who has helped me out of gieat
tribulation." When the false report of Luther's
capture reaches him in the Lowlands, he suddenly
introduces an uncommonly warm defence of the
Reformer, and lamentation over his supposed
capture. He breaks out strongly against Popery.
And after his return from the Lowlands, Diirer
wrote intensely anti-Catholic words upon a copy
of Ostendorfer's woodcut " The Veneratioa of
the Virgin of Ratisbon." But Dttrer was not the
kind of man to be a martyr. He never actually
renounced Catholicism. During his journey in
the Ivowlands his wife, and probably he, con-
fessed ; and it has been recently shown that his
rather sudien return to Nuremberg in the end
was the result of his being frightened of the
Inquisition.

ALBRECHT dORER 107

As has already been stated, most of his time
during the last years of his life was unfortunately
devoted to theoretical publications. He died
in tne well-known house, which to th» day is
the goal of thousands of pilgrims, at Nuranberg,
on the 6th of April 1528.

His death was mourned as never an artist's
death in Germany had been before him. A lock
of his hair was sent as a memento to his friend
HansBaldung. Pirkheimer was heartbroken. He
:nd Eoban Hesse wrote funereal elegies which
contained encomiums of the highest order.
In a letter to VanbOhler, Krkhdmer wrote:
"For among all people, who were not blood
relations, I loved no one so dearly, nor esteemed
any one so highly as him on account of his in-
numerable virtues and his rare righteousness."
Luther wrote to Hesse : As regards Dttrer, it
behoves a pious man to mourn for this best of
men. You, however, taxf well esteem him
happy, that Christ had enlightened him and took
him off betimes out of this stormy and most
likely soon still stormier era, so that he, worthy
of seeing only the best, was not compelled to see
the very worst. May he rest in peace, among
his fathers. Ambn." Melanchthon wrote : ''It
grieves me sorely, to see Germany bereaved

io8 STORIES OF GERM \N ARTISTS

of such an artist, such a man ! " Erasmus
of Rotterdam had just published the passage:
" I have known Diirer's name for a long time
•8 of first roiown in the art of punting. Some
style him the Apelles of our dty. But I
believe, were Apelles living, he woald n
honesty have yielded the palm to Dfirer. Apdki
made use of few and modest colours, yet he did
use colours. Durer, however, setting aside what
else he is to be admired for — what does he not
express by means of monochrome, i.e. by means of
black lines! Shadow and light, brilliancy, the
vanishing and protrusion in perspective; and
further, as occanon oflfisrs, he (vesents not only
the actual appearance of objects m we see then,
but observes beyond this, perfect symmetry and
harmony. Yes, indeed he knows how to put upoa
the canvas things that scarcely yield themselves to
pictorial treatment, such as fire, rays, storms,
lightning, heat-lightning, and fog, they say ; all
the passions, the entire soul of man divulged by
the body, in fact, almost language itself I All
this he presents to the eye so happily with those
simple bUck lines, that the {Mctiire would vaMm
if one were to colour it. Is it not mora ad*
minble to atuin that without the meretridow

ALBRECHT DOrER 109

charm of colour, than with it as did Apelles?"
And Camerariiu said of Diirer: "If there was
anything coniMCted with tlus man, which at least
resembled a fault, it waa solely lus immoderate
tpplicati(Mi and h's aelf-critidsm whkh he fre-
quently practised until he became unjust."

Not only his own countrymen, however, readily
admitted Diirer's superior virtues. Vasari states,
in the " Life of Andrea d'Angeli," that Andrea
borrowed figures from Durer's engravings for his
"St. John Baptizing," and for other pictures.
Of Pontormo he relatea that he likewise
borrowed a landscape of Dftrer for his ** Vktk"
and the compontions out oi D&rer's sets for
scries of the " Passion " in the Certosa near
Florence. He adds : " Let no one believe that
Jacopo deserves cencure for imitating the inven-
tions of Albrecht Diirer, for many painters have
done this and still continue to do so." Speaking
of a " Bacchanale " by Giovanni Bellini, Vasari
says: "If there be some lack of flow in the
drapery, accordii^ to the Germm taste, ap-
parent in it, that does not matter much, for
he was imitating a panel by Albrecht DUrer, who
came to Venice in those days, which had been
set up in the Church of St. Bartholomew, a rare

no STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

work with many figures painted in mIs."

Life of Rumondt " he enumerates a great niw»
ber of Diirer's engravings and woodcuts : '* I WQ«U
gladly believe that it was not a matter oi duMct
that D&rer could do superior things, for he
lacked good models, and when working from the
nude, had to draw after one of his prentice lads,
who must have been badly gr wn, as is com-
monly the case in Germany, thou h many a man
there has fine enough a figure «i his clothes."
Speaking of the " Life of the Virgin " : " It is so
beautiful that it would be imposnble to sttrpm
it in inventiwj, perspective, ardutecture and
drapery, old heads and young. Indeed, if this
rare and diligent artist had had Toscana instead
of Flanders (sic /) for his home, and had been
able like us to study the treasures at Rome, he
would have been one of the best painters in our
country, just as he was the rarest and most
celebrated master Flanders ever possessed."
Fmally he lauds Dflrer's paintings, and even Itii
sdentific worics. Campagnol also belongs to die
Italian artists who bcMTOwed from DOrer, and the
compliment Marcantonio Raimondi paid him by
copying a whole set of his woodcuts is well known.
To close with RaiFaello Santi— with whom Duitr

ALBRECHT DCRER hi

htd a ftkndly tBtercfauige of woric»— lie ex-
claimed, upon Wtti^ some of Dflrer's deagns:
" Indeed he weukl mrpui us aU» if, like us, he
were to have continually the worics oi the old
masters before him."

CHAPTER IV

HANS BURGKMAIR, HANS BALDUNO, AMD
MATTHIAS OR©NEWALD

" It is a matter for unceasing lament that oar
ancestors in Germany were so sluggish and dila-
tory, in so far as they, although they could
claim many fine masters in art, neglected to make
note of their repute, craft, and teaching, for the
better information, imitation, and encouragement
of posterity, and for the sake of history. It is
quite certun that if I had not intervened irhh
the present necessary book, and had jetted down
that which I could gather, in part by word of
mouth, from the oldest living artists, in part by
my eyes (in the course of my travels), their
great excellence might have quite vanished and
been altogether forgotten, so that our desoSD-
dants would have known nothing about tlwr
craft and virtue. This would have happened,
beyond a doubt, in the case of Hans Burgkmair,
who, as can be gleaned from his work, must have

HANS BURGKMAIR

"3

been an apprentice and disciple of Albrecht Diirer,
in which " (supposition) " I am confirmed by his
own pOTtfsit, dnwn in black cnyont which I
keep in my book of drawings. It bears the
monogram ^ and Burgkmair's name, and that
he was forty-four years old in 15 17.

"This most worthy man's laudable work ap-
pears in many books, such as the one in honour
of Emperor Maximilian, his serious and light
adventura, wherein are to be found numerous
neat and beautiful woodcuts by his " (Bui^kmair's)
" hand, which show to a sufficiency the overflow
of his understanding. Alongside of this he
executed a still finer work, which embraces nigh
upon 100 royal sheets in woodcut such as have
never been issued anywhere before, likewise in
honour of the sakl Emp<»'or. It shows beautiful
and variously shaped triumphal chariots — four
among them by the hand of Diirer himself, others
by Burgkmair, with and without horses — ^which
are pulled by men or propelled by curious in-
ternal mechanisms ; before others, however, stags
and various other animals have been harnessed.
He has further peopled some <^ the cars with
musicians, and on some of them the virtues of
the Emperor ar'* " ptersonated, upon others a
part of his retinue. Heralds head the procesnon

114 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

nf riders, then follow officers of tht law, and so
on down to the milittry servants, on water, on
horseback, and on foot, along with mofc thn
• huntbed other penoas; Ukewbe fctr-goMd,
sutlers, and such kind according to their rank,
from the highest to the lowest, all done in so
•jtately a fashion that never anything n h.ve
been done more magnificent, neat, and ui. of
-t. Wh this beautiful w. < never appeared,
wnether it was on account of the kmeiwrtit
departote of the Emperor, or for whM elfccr
cftW I do not kaoir, for all that I bave
erer seen of it is » set of trial impresiions,
and a -miJete set with irscriptions has never
been found. This ame set my dear friend,
Matthew Merian the elder, let me ha ve as a
favour, who had the book <rf the irt dmktMmm.
The said Mitner assured Wm «t the tm Alt
the origiittl btoeks were kept in « shop " (Ssadwt
csUs it » •* vsttit ") ' at Augsburg. When, here-
upon, the honourable Van Spiring s? - thi?
beautifi bonk in my possession, ! iid m d«irc
to cross h - >rt-longing, but tr wtttt grw
trouble to see whether I coiUd n Isy ^ <>'
these blocks. Bat in the end I fHsld r
anything e««pt * sheet of the pr session c bt
PImwers, and the imrdi of a disordered bend

HANS BURGKMAIR 115

soldiery. Wherefore I greatly fear that thejr muit
have been lately consumed by fire.

"This Burgkmair nainted a corner house of
the Count Fugger residence at Augsburg on the
Wine Maricet-place, most ingeniously, iUceinie a
house opposite die Church of St. Amie, fihae
he rejHretented ii^jenioatly and •kilfuUy npoii
the walls various artists, done so well in coloon
that, although it is exposed to wind, rain, sun-
shine, and other inclemencies of the weather, it
has not faded or lost a trifle after so many years.
The G)nvent of St. Catherine, in the same city,
posKsset by his hand a very large panel in the
dmstert, which tepresents the seven churches of
Rome which are visited by pilgrims of all nati(Mis,
among them St. Ursula with her large following.
And although the figures are small, on account
of their great numbers, still the work is to be
highly esteemed on account of its rare invention,
excellent action, and the strange costmnes neatly
done."

The year 1473, as Burgkmair's birth-year, is
corroborated by the inscription on his portrait of
himself and his wife, now in the Gallery at
Vienna, and by the inscription on a medallion-
portrut, a wood-carving, at Berlin. He was not
a pupil, scarcely an imitator, but a fricadly rival

ii6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

of Diirer ; he had received his instructions from
his father, and probably had visited Itdy as an
apprentice. He was freed of the Guild at Augs-
burg in the year 1498. The principal bodu for
which Burgkmair designed woodcuts are the
"Weiiskunig" (119 sheets), the "Thewrdank"
(14 sheets), and the "Genealogy of the Em*
peror" (77 sheets).

The set of remarkable proofs of the
" Triumphal Procession," which Sandrart once
owned, has passed into the posaesnon of the
Royal Print Room at Dresden. A moit im-
portant feature of Burgkmair's woodcut woric
are his clair-obscurs. They belong to the earliest
and most beautiful specimens of the art; moit
of them were probably cut upon the block by
Jost de Negker. The "Saint George," an
" Allegory of Death," " Emperor Maximilian U.
on Horseback," a "Portrait of Baumglrtncr,"
and (Mie of " Pope Julius II.," are espedally
noteworthy.

The mural paintings on the house opposite
St. Anne's Church have withstood the inclemencies
of the climate down to our own times ; but, in
the middle of the seventies of last century, they
are already spoken of as scarcely recognia^rfe.
The Fugger paintings have not been pmervsd.

HANS BALDUNG u?

The work in the cloisters of the St. Catherine
Convent consisted of a series of pictures repre-
senting the hallowed churches of Rome to which
the pilgrims throng. Burgkmair punted three
rf the series, and they are now in the Augsburg
Gallery. Other important paintings by him,
beyond those already mentioned, are — at Augs-
burg, a Triptych (15 19), the "Battle of
Cannae," "Emperor Henry" and "St. George";
at Berlin, a Holy Family "(1511); tt Mumch,
a copy of Schongauer's " Self-portnut,** "Duke
William of BtYtria," " Esther and Ahwuerus;'
"St. John on the Isle of Patmos " ; at Nurembei^,
"St. Christopher," "St. Vitus," "St. Sebastian,"
"The Virgin with the Grape" (1510), and a
"Madonna" (with a fine landscape, 1509).
Burgkmair died, 1 531, at Augsburg.

The justice of Sandrart's complaint as to the
negligence of tlw aurly Renatatance gmeration,
which has failed to collect and preserve informa-
tion about its great artists for the use of posterity,
appears in full force in the case of Hans Baldung.
How well he was esteemed in his own day may
be gleaned from the circumstance that he is
referred to in Jean Pelerin's Dt Ar^aale Per-
tpectiva (1521); further, by his friendship with
DOrer, who took some oi his work along irtth

ii8 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

him to sell on his journey to the Lowlands. A
lock of Diirer's hair was sent to Baldung when
Diirer died.

But Sandiwt mentions him by his right name
oaly in the brief pamge where he esttUalMi
the priority and superiority of the Germans om*
the Italians in the matter of engraving and wood-
cut. He says the latter is proved by three
works alone, namely, " St. Anne and the Virgin,"
by Diirer; ''Adam and Eve," by Cranach; and
" The lOstter," by Baldung. Farther on, Sn-
drart diseuates this muter, but nader a wraiig
name. This it the way the passage runs:—

" At the same time " (as Matthaeus Griinewald)
" there lived another excellent man called Hans
Griinewald, of whom just as little is known as of
the said MatthKus, except that the wings of the
altar-piece by Diirer, mentioKed above, thft ont>
nde which Matdueat of Atchaffenburg pmtd,
were punted inndc, carefully and aUy, by ^tk
Hans Grftnewald. Over and above this, we
possess a number of drawings by this hand, and
also a woodcut of several fat, naked women,
sitting about a fire, with ointment pots, pitch-
forks, and he-goats at if about to ride off to
a tritth atiembly, and many other thi^p of
thit Idi^. No more abmit the life and doA

HANS BALDUNG 119

of this artist is known ; notwithstanding, I have
deemed him worthy of being placed by th« nde
of other famous masters, and bong thus (vofeected
finm the envious grvp of Time. May the re-
port of his virtues and his art be awakened to
renewed life by the laudable bugle call of Fame."

Hans Baldung was born about the year 1480
in the hamlet Weyersheim, not far from Strass-
burg. His fiunily htikd from Gmibid, in
Suatna. His Ather wu s kgtl crfkkl in the
service of the Bi^op <^ Strasrimig. It b v«ry
likely that Baldung lesmed his craft between
the years 1500 and 1506, under Diirer at
Nuremberg. The earliest known signed work
is dated 1507. Two years later, on the 17 th
of April, he bought the right of dttzcnlup tt
Straisburg, and in 1510 he msnried B. Margaret
Herlin, who survived him. From about 151a
to 1 5 16 he was living at Freiburg, in the
Breisgau, about fifty miles disunt from Strass-
burg, where he painted for the cathedral the
large main altar, at least one side altar«piece,
and a number of stained-glan windows. From
1 5 17 he appears to have fived uninterruptedly
in Strassbirg, lAun he became eourt<^pimtcr to
the bishop, and in 1545 member of die Muni-
cipal Council. He died in the senM year. His

120 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

surname Grien (Griin) was bestowed upon him
on account of his predilection for this colour,
green, dther in lus own dress or in his pictoros.

He experienced the influence of Schongsosr
and Grflnewald, besides that of DOrer. This is
shown plainly by the Freiburg main altar-piece,
which, with its eleven panels, is one of the
most important among the German religious
paintings of the sixteenth century. The subject
of the central panel is a "Coronadon cf tke
Virgin." The shutters outnde discovtt knt
scenes from the life of the Virgin — a masterly
' night scene,' the " Nativity," and a charmag
" Flight into Egypt " among them.

Among other important paintings of his there
are — at Basle, "Death Assaulting a Young
Woman" (15 17); at Berlin, "The Martjprtok
of St. Stephen" and a "Fietk"; at BudafMi,
*'Adam and Eve"; at London, a "Fietk'*;
several pictures at Strassburg; a portrait at
Vienna. Baldung painted a number of worb
for Christopher Marggrave of Baden, a woodcut
portrait of whom he had designed as early u
the year 151 1. We possess ptMrtraits hf ik
hand from 1513 onward, and pictures oi Budu
— at that time still a rare subject for a Qat^plw
painter to be interestad in-— from 15 17 on.

HANS BALDUNG 121

Baldung has also engraved a few plates on
copper. The best-known one takes up a theme
wUch was popular long before hu day — the old
dotard, who it bailed by a young frail woman,
and imagines she hankers afW his love, whereas
she is only interescwd in his money. The best is
at once the least known, a wonderful, impressive
" Piet^," a rare little round piece, only two and a
quarter inches in diameter.

Baldui^ felt most at honae when he wu
dengmng Mumd-glus mndowt or dkkt, and
when he was working for the woodcutter. The
Minster at Freiburg preserves fine specimens of
his craft as a stained-glass artist, others are to be
found in the Museums of Applied Arts at Basle,
Berlin, Freiburg, Karlsruhe, and Nuremberg. In
his woodcuts his imagination plays freely, and
he engages unrestrainedly upon woric wluch in-
terests him, whether it pleased the public of his
times or not. He delights in bold drawing,
difficult foreshortenings, and in a fine sensuous
type of men and women. His studies of the
nude are singularly powerful, and the style of
h» art is preeminently unccmyenUontl, of the
type which we should characterise hf the expresnon
" art for art's sake." His Urge " Holy Family "
with St. Anne and St. Joachim, the large " Holy

122 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Family " with St. Anne only, " The Descent from
the Cross " and " Lamentation," " The AscenMon
of the Saviour," " The FftU of Adam tad Eve,"
" The ^roe," the DOrereaque ** Madonmi Rad-
ing, with AngeU," " The Witches" and the « St.
Christopher," belong to the most valuable speci-
mens of the Black and White Art which the
German Renaissance has produced.

" Matthaeus of Grunewald, otherwise calkd
MatthflBus of Aschafienburg, need yield to aooe
of the best among the old Gennan masters in dK
arts of Designing and Painting ; on the contrary,
he is in truth to be rated, if not superior to the
most perfect and best, at least fully their equal.
It is lamentable that this uncommon man could
have fallen into such utter neglect that I do not
know of a single man alive who could give even
the slightest written or oral account <^ Um, In
order that an apfmdation <^ him, however, asy
see the light of day, I intend to adduce i^
particular care, whatever has come to my know-
ledge, lacking which, this fine rememlmnoe would
vanish altogether within a few years.

" More than fifty years have already elapied
since the death of a very old but skillul pnater
at Frankfort, called Philipp Uffcnfaach, who W»
once upon a dme an aj^ireaticc of the §mtf»

MATTHIAS GRCNEWALD 123

German painter, Grimmer. This Grimmer was a
pupil of the said Matthaeus of the AschafFenburg,
and he pretenred carefully everything of lus that
he was able to collect. More etpedatty <Ud he
obtain a number of munificent drawings, mostly
black crayons, and nearly life size, after the
master's death, from his widow, all of which the
»id Philipp UfFenbach, as being a thoughtful man,
secured subsequent to Grimmer's death. At that
dine I used to go to schod near hit lodgings,
nd often waylaid him, that he thoiild show me,
whmever he was in good sorts, tlus book of
noble drawings by Matthcus of Aschaiienbui^,
whose manner he (UflFenbach) had painstakingly
studied, and whose meritorious qualities and ex-
cellence he had discovered. This whole volume
wu sold at a high price, after the mad Uffenbach's
death, by hia widow to the hmom amateur,
Abraham Schelkcn of Frankfort, who fdaced it
(along with many other splendkl wwka of art,
the finest of old and modem paintings, rare
books and engravings, which it would take far
too much time to enumerate) in his far-famed
Fine-Art Cabinet, to commemwate everlastingly
tliis renowned hand, for the sweet detight of all
amateurs: to which" (cabinet) "I wbh in this
wise to have directed the hit reader.

124 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

"This excellent artist lived round about the
time of Albert Dtirer, and the year 1505 is
the date inscribed on the altar of the ' Ascension
of the Virgin,' in the Dominican Convent at
Frankfort, d<Mie by Albiecht Dftrer, the fmt
wingt of wMch, outnde, when the tltar n doted,
were punted by this Matthaeus of Aschain.
burg, with grey and black colours. Upon one
of them is depicted ' St. Lawrence with the Grid-
iron,' upon the other a 'Saint Elizabeth,' upon
the third a * St. Stephen,' and upon the fmvA
tnother picttire which hu escaped my nwancy,
all neatly posed, as can be seen to this day st
Frankfort. His 'Transfiguration of Christ upon
Mount Tabor,' above all, executed in water-
colours, is most commendable, upon which we
see first a beautiful cloud, wherein Moses and
Elijah appear, beside the apostles who are kneel-
ing upon the ground. In composition, coloraooa,
and all niceoes, this fncture is executed so cMC'
fully, that for curiosity nothing may surpass it
Indeed, it is as to manner and properties inoon-
parable, and a mother of all Graces."

" Furthermore, there were by this noble hand,
in the Cathedral of Mayence, on the lefit-hnd
side of the chcnr, three altat^eces in as mmi
cUifcrent chapels. Each altar-{neee had two winfi

MATTHIAS GRUNEWALD 125

painted inside «nd out. The first discovered ' Our
Lady with the Christ-child in a Cloud,' adored by
many saints on the earth, St. Catherine, SS.
Barbara, Cecilia, Elizabeth, ApollonU, and Untth,
all of tliem drawn ably, true to Mtave, finely
and correctly, and coloured in the same fashion,
that they seem rather to be of the heavens
than of the earth Upon another altar-piece
one saw a blind hermit about to cross the frozen
Rhine with the boy who leads him, who has
been attacked by two murderers upon the ice.
As he is bong killed, he lies over his boy, who
screams for help : a jnece, overflowii^ as it were,
with proper sentiment, fine execution, and
strangely befitting, true conceits. The third
piece was somewhat less perfect than the other
two, and they were all removed in the year 1631
or 32, during the raging wars, and despatched
to Sweden in a boat, where they went to the
bottom of the tea, along with many other similar
pieces, in consequence of a shipwreck.

" There is said to be yet another altar-piece by
this hand at Eisenach, upon which a remarkable *St.
Anthony ' may be seen, and in which the appa-
ritions behind the windows are sud to be defUy
executed. Furthermore His Grace, Duke William
of Bavaria, of sacred memory, a sage judge and

it

9; •41

•l-ii

126 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

anuteur of the Fine Arts, possessed t smil!
*Cru■ !*•^ with Our Lady and St. John, and i
Migdalen kneeling in earnest prayer, pains'
takingly executed by this hand, without knowiag
by wh :>m the picture was. Thu Mine piece «■
remarkaUe, on aeeount <^ die Qimt Vjfm
the CroM, hangti^ limfAy down, and rmiig
heavily upon his feet, as true to nature as the real
life itself. And verily this * Crucifix ' appeared
natural and true above all others, upon patient
and intelligent perusal ; therefore it was engraved
in half-folio nze, in the year 1605, by RaphMl
Sadeler on copper, at the expccasdenre ef limwH
Dake. His Grace, the late Duke MwimiBw,
of most sacred memory, was exceedingly pleased,
when I revealed to lum the authorship of dK
picture."

"Again there is a woodcut (set) of the
'Revelation of St. John,' difficult to obtain,
whidt is sud to be by this hand; m&
was in my time at Rome a life-«ze 'St. jfeha,'

with clasped hands, standing and looking up as
if at the figure of Christ upon the Cross, ftill
of piety and emotion, and stately grace, whidi
was esteemed so high as to be considered a work
by Albert Diirer. As I, however, recognised by
whom it wa« and made plun the diAieMtif

MATTHIAS GRONEWALD 127

manner, I immediately thereafter wa: called upon
to sign the picture with oil colours (the same
with which I was at thftt time paintiiig the
effigy of die Topt), thiM: * MatthBttt Grftnewtld
Aknana /Mt.* And dm, then, is til of what
hn come to my knowledge of the art-work of
this excellent Ge; .an, beyond, that he lived
most of his time at Mayence, and spent a
retired, melancholy life, and was unhappily
married. Where and whtn he died, I do not
know, but mthn* believe diet it mutt heve
been round ebottt the yctt 15x0."

Grftnewftkl is one of die few artists of whom
Sandrart speaks more than once. Re\-erting to
him, in a later chapter he recapitulates what he
said before, and '•^ntions again the Schelkens
and SjMring (Hague) collection. " I, for my part,
gave as expHdt an accou.-i^ o< htm as I m» aUe
to, and far.i!«hed in the ; .r n« v japter a Hke-
nesB of him, which Albert ' ? drew, at the
time they set up Mr. Jaa Heller's altar-
piece in the Dominican Church at Frankfort.
But as that is a portrait done when he was
young, and since Mr. Philipp Jscob Strtoer,
the honourable councillor in thi!^ city, dwwed
me in hk famoos «t a^Met, an dkder and tdll
finer one of this matter, dwrefere I have ako

128 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

reproduced that (portrait) for the greater honour
of this exalted German Corr^jgio."

A hundred yean before Sandrart pobUdud
his accouiit, Bernard Jobin, in hk Aeemvta ^ff^f
( 1 573)» "peaks of " Martin of Oschenburg (AMli
afFenburg), whose precious painting is to be sees
at Isna." And in 1620 Vinccnz Stcinmeyer, m
his Kuns(bUchlein, mentions : " The mosti famotti
Albert Diirer, in whose lifetime liv: x dtt
admirable utitt and painter, Matth. of Aidlp>
affmbiug, whoK alulfttl punting mtf be mm
to this day at Lesheim near Colmar, likewise at
Mayence in the CathedrrV at Aichaffmb«q|,
and at other places."

Martin Griinewald was born about 146$,
probably at AschaflRsnburg, as far as can bt
aacertuMd, the son of oat tints &ttBMNl|
a bdur. He wu it'il aliye in 1529, whMl
date ts to be found upon a self-portrait.

The Isna, Lesheim, Eysznen, and Eisensdi
of the old authors is Isenheim, near Colmar, at
which place '^he Antoniter Church once housed
Grtinewald's chef eTattvre, now in the Museum
of Colmar. The centre-rnece of this poiyptieh
contiined three wood-carved sMtues. It HI
tenksd bjr two stationary puntvd wiagSi esdi
containing a life-use figure, **St Antlwaf li

lit. Lwi-uunt, iii !

>rOKli > •>F GFKN;AN ARTISTS

•s -•'^v.-c Samirart ptiblishal
J.. Sin, in his /kcu mu- I'-^gm
Mir -.11 of C)s>-nen-^.;rg (AscIn
, .-J,! \ i wiu \^ ••• •" ^SCB

; "i'. V .!;Crrn ■ St,"" M :Ntr, in

■, •,r>(.:,- ■ ■ '"he nu. I ta.:iOU»

, iiru' i . Mitth. ')f AtC^
St. : hit •(■a nting ma\ be IMI
• , ►jv aav ai Lc'^hcur. iv-ir l.'olmar, Ukcwiie*
Vlavenc 'n t ic Cathedia!, a' AscluflRtsibuH.

iiivi a: or! , ^ ;• i vs.

M.'.i t\ri ( 'A-.'. 'forr 'hoi" 14^$.
^ r . . V- .'-.jT-. iS'.tv a> f.>'. i
iS, ■• .;ru-l <-»njn«mMi

'hiker. Mo vva^ S.1:'. i ^wv. ui 13-/
,. -s tt \<i f--u'.' ': 't. 4 sf)t'-p...nri»t.

, . , , • .,n. ' ^-^r.*

A- ■. . 1 -

. >li ..Ui"

MATTHIAS GRONEWALD 129

the garb of a Bishop" on the left-hand side,
" St. Sebastian," the martyr, on the right. Two
sets of shutters closed the centre-fnece. On
the outade of the outer set wu ptinted t
" Crucifixion " ; on the inude, the " Annuncittim "
on the left-hand side, the "Resurrection of
Christ" on the right. On the outside of the
inner set was painted a " Virgin with the Christ-
child " in a landscape ; on the inside, " St. Anthony
and St. Paul " on the left-hand side, and a weird
"Temptation of St. Anthony" on the r^ht.
There was also a predella, a " FietiL" The ptint-
ings are all by Griinewald, the ctnred statues,
&c., by other hands. The altar was executed
between the years 1493 and 1516.

Of the Mayence altar-pieces no traces remain,
nor of the " St. John " which Sandrart discovered
at Rome, nor of the " CructfixtOn " which Sadeler
engraved. Only t few the drawings out of the
"great number" which Schelken possessed seem
to have come down to us, among them a *• Praying
Saint" (possibly a "St. Joseph"), now in the
.^ibertina Collection at Vienna. The woodcut
"Apocalypse," which Sandrart, misled by the
monogram, ascribes to Grflnewald, is by M.
Gening.

The principal works by Grflnewald which we

I30 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

still have, besides the Isenheim altar*[nece, are—
at AschafFenburg, a predella, a "Pieti"; at

Basle, an early " Christ upon the Cross " ; at
Frankfort-on-the-Main, a "St. Cyriakus" and a
"St. Lawrence" (two of the Heller altar wings);
at Karlsruhe, a "Christ upon the Cross"; at
Munich, a large painting with life-size figures
of St. Erasmus and St. Mauritius, once the
centre-piece of an altar painted for the Churdi
of St. Morris at Halle, and transpmted to Asch-
afFenburg in the year 1540; at Stuppach, in
Wiirtemberg, a " Madonna with the Rainbow,"

There is no Renaissance architecture or orna-
ment in Griinewald's work, a sure sign that he
never passed into Italy. Bom befox D&rer
even, he is one of the oldest and indeed the
most extraordinary of German sixteenth-century
artists. Sandrart's appellation, "this Germaa
Correggio," is sagaciously appreciative; Grflne-
wald is the only '•rue coiourist of the German
Renaissance, the only true " stimmungsmaler,"
punter of the "passions." There is a certun
reckless ferocity pervading his drawing ; he does
not avoid ugly, even deformed types. The
brilliant coloration transfigures it all, and he is
the first great naturalist of an intensity of feel-
ing which scarcely any one has atuined to since

MATTHIAS GRONEWALD 131

his time, and which certainly nobody ever has
surpassed.

The "Christ upm the Crow," now in the
Karlsruhe Galtery, is a thing to repulse one at
first; but slowiy it exerciaet a growing fascina-
tion upon us, and in the end we are filled with

ad miration of the forceful, weird conception.
" This is the Christ of St. Justinus, St. Cyrillus,
TertuUian, the Jesus, as early Christianity knew
Him, the unsightly Christ, whose Wtter suflfer-
ings told upon Him as He took the heavy load
of the World's sin upon Himself."

"The God of the Poor, He who kept com-
pany with the wretched, with the outcasts, with
all of them whose misery and repulsiveness the
world despises. The most human God, a Christ
deserted by nature, of frailest flesh, to whom help
from above did not come before He had drained
the last dregs. The Christ with a mother for
whom He cries out with the frightened voice of
a child, just as every one when in greatest danger
calls out for his mother. With the mother, who
stands near by, powerless like every mother."

••In quest of lowest degradation, He had
discarded Godhead from the moment when
the first insults, the first whips of the scourge,
struck Him.

132 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

" Only thus was He able to sufFer — suffer like
a human, like a felon, like « cnr, low, soiled,
down to the horror of decompoMtioB."

Snce Grflnewftld, Natunfism hu never dared
to approach this theme. No painter ever again
dared to point with such Ivutal audacity at the
Holy wounds.**

CHAPTER V

ALBRECHT ALTDORFER AND THE NUREMBERG
"LITTLE masters"

Albrecht Altdorfer — "little" Albrecht, as
he was often called, to distinguish him from
Albrecht DOrer, the form of whose monogram
he imitated— is one cS the most capdvatif^ artists
of the German Renussance. Sandnurt's account
of him is both spare and inaccurate. Albrecht
Altdorfer had his name from his natal city
Altdorf, in Switzerland, where many of his
pictures are to be seen, which closely resemble
his engravings. He was strongest in small
biblicsl pictures, which he thought out carefully,
uA he was full oi application. la wiurtwer he
accompUshed a spirited power of invention, and
an element of unusual strikingness, can be de>
tected, for all of which he deserves especial
praise. For although his works appear a trifle
confused, since the background, according to the
custom of the time, stands out as defined as the

foreground, still they are replete with deep

m

134 STORIES OF G..RMAN ARTISTS

understanding, abov t^^ all his large ' St. Jerome,' his
'Crucifixion,' and others. His large 'Ensign,'
likewise, is a very decorative woodcut, u ire,
mortoret, his ' Pyramus and Thtsbe,' * AbifMl,'
and the * Pasnon,' in which a fine dtajday ai iki
passions is unfolded. He issued between fifty
and sixty engravings upon copper, and rather
more woodcuts ihan this, all of which are to be
held in high esteem, and are kept in the port-
folios among the little prints or masters; from
which his industry, perseverance, and elMI»
headedness appear fall well."

Very little of this — not even the ended
holds good. We know now that ^Ibrecht Wsi
bom probably in Ratisbon, shortly before I4I0,
and most likely descended of an old Ratisbon
family. His father appears to have been an
artist, who migrated in 1499 to .^nbaig, M It
teems. When our AHdorfisr becomes a (BMHrii
a£ Ra^bon in 1505, he is described as m **fKtm
from Amberg." Four years later the city magis-
trates pay in part for a painting which he did for
the choir in St. Peter's ; in 1 5 1 3 he bought a house
in Ratisbon ; in 1519 he became a member of the
** outer " Council. He took a hand in driving
the Jews from Ratisbon. From 1526 uatt'tti
death he was a flMmber <^ the ** mner " Wt M wt

MKHOCOPr nSOlUTION TIST CHAIT

(ANSI and ISO TEST CHART No. 2)

-4 /APPLIED IN/HGE h

<6^3 Cost Main StrMt
jmr^ Rochasler, N«r York I«t0« US*

THE "LITTLE MASTERS" 135

should put it, "superior" Council. His wife,
Anna, had died in 1532 ; he himself passed aw»y
between the middle of February and the beginning
of March of the year 1538. His life had been
one of growing prosperity, and, as he left no
children, hit con^dentble property fell to the lot
of his brother Erhard, who was a court-painter
in Schwerin, and two married sitters at Nurem-
berg and Pfrcimdt. He had not only painted,
engraved, and designed upon the block in Ratis-
bon, but had also worked as an architect for the
Municipal Government there.

Altdorfer has, with a great degree of jattice,
been called the (viginator of Icndtcape painting.
Not only does landtcape pndotmmtt in tuch
pictures as the " Sutanna and the Two Elders,"
now at Munich, to a degree quite unknown in
the art of Germany up to his day, but in the
small landscape in the same gallery Altdorfer
has given us presumably the earliest pure land-
scape known to German RenaiMuice Art Thie
picture shows no figtne-woirie whatever. The
Gallery at Vienna used to own another pinre
landscape, and the Museum at Berlin possesses
a third, in which some allegorical figures play
quite a minor part. A series of small panels,
with subjects from the life of St. Quirin (now

136 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

scattered, and to be found in Nuremberg and
Siena), a large polyptich altar in the Austrian
Monastery of St. Florian, a " St. George " and
the "Battle of ArbeU" in Munich, "Chriit
upon the Cross " and a " Holy Family at the
Well" in Berlin, and the "Conversion of St
Hubert" in Glasgow, are the most important
among the paintings by Altdorfer which have
been handed down to us.

As an engraver Altdorfer ranks with the
so-called •* little Masters," the principal Nurem-
berg group of which will form the subjea of
the latter part of this chapter, and he is the most
winning of them all. His mind does not sotf
as high as did Diircr's, as a draughtsman he
is not above reproach, nor does he patiently
elaborate the careful technique of men like the
Behams. But he has strong personal convictions,
and he does not adapt them to the style of tht
Italians or of any ont else. He has more feelii^,
and takes a deeper interest in man and woman
than any other artist of his day and country,
barring Diirer alone. The younger generation
of artists, to which he half belongs, delighted in
art for art's sake, and when they are at liberty
to work at they like, their produce is primarily
a cult of beauty. Altdorfer employs art ss a

THE "UTTLE MASTERS" 137

means to lay open the character, the inner life
and souls of the men and women around him.
Bcham's or Aldegrever's Cleopatras or Lucreccs
pose as beautiful women, and they pose as silent
statues; but every figure th»t Altdorfer ever
engraved teems to be telling us something, and
there is a vein of intimacy about it as if the
communication were a thing between you and
me alone. Not one of them all is satisfied with
merely impersonating some given hero or heroine ;
they all seem to be doing or thinking something
which only they, and no creations of any one
else before or beride them, have thought or done.
In short, whereas the rest seem to have seen what
they drew with their mind's eye, Altdorfer seems
to have fallen back upon his bodily eye alone,
and in each case taken a momentary view of
people, which he then fixes upon the copper
without generalising it. He did not undertake
to draw a Madcmna ; but he drew a mother and
child as he saw them. If the design warranted
the label, it was afterwards called a Madonna.
He is the predecessor of the naturalistic and the
genre painter.

Early in life, he worked as an engraver, and
after a pause of a decade or so, again during the
last eight years before his death. His devotional

138 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

plates are very beautiful. He was one of the
earliest men to take up etching for decorattvt
work. His etched landscapes arc not only rare,
but extremely remarkable. They discover him,
influenced pretty much the same principl^il
Whistler; the simihrity, after one htft deddiH
the (Hfltrences which are a natnral conaequentse
the intervening space of about 350 years, is Mtlly
astonishing. Altdorfer was also an able da^ptx
of wuodcuts.

"In spite of the fact that the fine artist, BARTii.
Beham, was bom a German, many among m%
well at among foreigners have taken lum Kfi
f<»eigner, »nce he never attached hla name or

his mark to one of his engravings on copper (of
which he published many), but only signed somt
of them between the years 1520 and 1528. h
order that this Beham's {i.e. Bohemian's) prrir-
worthy name may not quite disappear, Aitt
•carcely anybody can tell anything tboat Ifc
nowadays, I will publish his undying fame hire,
Which I have heard the octogenarian painter,
Donauer, in Munich, tell about, who heard forty
years ago, that this Beham was reckoned among
the very foremost painters in his time. And th»
was confirmed to me by the famous and ingenious

ST. GEORGE AND THE DRAGON
(Mumkhi

THE "UTTLE MASTERS" 139

wu-embosser, Alexander Abondio, who gave
me a circumstantial account of his work. In
course of time I have bought there numbers of
his beautiful drawings, which I prize highly in
his honour.

*'The most wonhipful Elector of Btvam
possesses in his gallery various portrrits by diis
hand, which yield to none in art and duntiness.
They are ' Charles V.,' * Ferdinand I.,' ' Elector
Otto Henry,' ' Duke William,' and more of the
same sort are preserved in the cabinet of His
Excellency Prince Neuburg, all of which portraits
are well drawn, well and neatly punted, true
to nature in colwation, and well concdved in all
parts.

" As to his engravings on coppep— for the most
part unknown, as stated above — and especially
uncommon as to their subject, they are a * Charles
V.' and a ' Ferdinand I.,' of one and the same size,
Duke William of Bavaria,' ' Leonard von Eck,' a
certun ' Baldennann,' and others. He (Bartfael B.)
wwked for a long time with Mue Antonio
(Raimondi) in Rome and in Bologna, where many
of his works were issued under the name of this
Antonio. But it is to be remembered that
Antonio engraved after the designs of Raphael
d'Urblno whereas our Beham drew upon his

HO STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

own knowledge, and sufficiently proved thereby
his high-soaring understanding. Among such
(engravings) there are, the • Dying Child ' lying on
the ground near a skull with the inscription, * Mm
omnia cquat,' and another quite nmikr one wA
three skulls, and a ' Virgin Mary ' seated widua a
window with the Christ-child, and many other
smaller onei-, and a ' Soldier on Horseback,' a
dainty, naked ' Cleopatra,' many peasants, dances of
cluldren, omamenul foliage, and several elon-
gated peces of warriors, with very active figuits,
which show how admirably this Barthel und«<>
stood such naked figures and the «i«Mg««ng of
them. Among them there is a ' Raptus Heleme,'
a 'Titus Gracchus,' and others, some of which, fw
instance, * Adam and Eve with Death before the
Tree of Life,' a ' Virgin,' ' The Untimely Birdi,'
'Judicium Paridis,' and several unseemly bath-
houses, were adrmtly copied by his counn sad
brother's son, Hans Sebald Beham, pasang under
this latter's name. Thus, indeed, Germany nas
been illumined by this commendable Barthel
Beham, and it profited by him as regards its
Art. He died in Italy, whither the Duke of
Bavaria had sent him."

"Barthel Beham of Nuremberg was one of
the earliest masters in Germany to comprehend

THE "LITTLE MASTERS" 141

the Antique, to practise intelligently the art of
engraving, and to carry it from Germany to Italy.
After the fmmous Italkn, Marc Antmuo, had
engraved Raflfkello Santi'a designs upon copper,
his mark is generally to be found upon the
best of RaflRiello's compositions, thus M.A.F.,
which signifies Marcus Ant. Fecit. The popu-
larity and common practice of the art of en-
graving upon copper in Italy traces back to this
Barthel Beham. ¥or the earliest and best works
which were issued under Marc Antonio's name
were most of them executed with the help of
Barthel. In consequence thereof, the masterly
draughtsman Beham, compassed Raffaello's art of
drawing so well and imitated it, so that he im-
ported to Germany a much finer science of the
art of drawing, gleaned from Rafiaello and the
Antiques. This Jacob Knk and George Pencz,
twc well-known masters of Nuremborg, prove m
a measure, and a view of their work shows that
they followed his manner. Barthel entered the
service of the Duke of Bavaria, where he made
many portraits, which couldn't be improved upon ;
and much of his work is to be seen in his and in
the Prince of Neuburg's Catnnets, as I have
already sud.

142 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

" Hans Sebald Bkham was not only a pu{Ml
of Us counn Baithel, but, above that, copied Iwn
puostakingly ; he oigraved neatly ufKm cojfti,
and followed the manner of his cousin very
well. He finished much rare, small work at
Nuremberg, for example, dances of peasants as
they were common thereabouts, and peasants'
huts of that neighbourhood ; and he also issued a
number of woodcuts. Because he lived rather
loosely, and pictured a number of impro^
things, he went from Nuremberg to Frankfort
and settled there at the St. Leonard's Gate,
where he painted a good deal, engraved upon
copper, and more particularly drew fine designs
upon the block. In fine, he set up a wine tavern,
which, however, owing to his manner <^ life,
received a bad name, and he l»ought this>bsd
reputation with him to the grave, about the year
I54S-"

Sandrart's account of the Behams calls for
correction in some details. Barthel was born in
1502, and was banished from Nuremberg in
1525. He never returned to Nuremberg, but
was retuned by the Dukes of Bavaria, for whom
he painted at Munich and Landshut, poittiits
principally. Most of these are to-day at
Augsburg, Berlin, Donaueschingen, Schleissheim,

THE "UTTLE MASTERS" 143

Nurembei^, and Munich, tlie iMt-tiAmed Gallery
possessing also his mott important biblical work,
" The Finding of the Cross." He was of an in-

dependent spirit (as will appear in connection
with the story of his banishment), and a leader.
Sebald (the name Hans is conjectural) did actually
follow and copy him, and this may have led
Sandrart to h- liere him a younger cousin. As a
matto: of fiict, Sebald was Barthel's older brother,
bom 1500. He waf banished from Nurembei^
at the same time iis Barthel, but was allowed to
return very soon. He soon got into trouble
again, being accused, in 1528, of surreptitious
publication of Diirer's theoretical work — of a
sort of plagiarism, in fact. Sebald then spent some
time at Ingobtadt and Munich, but returned to
Nuremberg in 1529. Soon after, he migrated
to Frankfort and settled there definitely in 1535,
in which year he relinquished his rights of citiz •
ship at Nuremberg. Hard times followed, a
he set up his wine-tavern, no doubt becaufc his
labours as an artist failed to support hsm. The
accusation of having lived a Tc se life axe to be
taken cum gram salts. They refer m part to his
having turned heretic, and to the cultivation of
the antique ideal in his art. The several im-
proper prints which he did actually engrave seem

I

144 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

to have been intended as moral warnings, to
judge by the texts with which he acccmiiMuued
them. Hit inclination towards Mythology and
Heathenism, was not altogether a nutter oi
free will. The trend of the times lay towards
banishing pictorial art from the churches and
reducing the output of devotional prints, which
some declared to be little less than idols. There-
fore Beham and his friends had to look out for
other subjects, since these were more or lew out
of vogue. The exact date of Seb«ld*t death was
the 22nd of November 1550.

" George Pencz's natal town was the noble
imperial and commercial city of Nuremberg,
where, along with life he compassed virtue and
art. After his good understanding had furdiered
him to that pdnt that he conudered the emi-
nent draughtsmanship evinced by the work of
RafFaello d'Urbino as of the finest order, he
travelled to Rome, ar.d imitated this manner as
well as he could, and in consequence attained to
such excellency in historical and other pictures,
that he surpassed every one in the Germany of
hit day in this manner; wherefore, too, the
Bolognese engraver. Marc Antonio, passed many
things after drawings of Ra£faello (by Pencz) t»

THE "LITTLE MASTERS" 145

his own. However, as he himself presently
became rich in invention, in painting, as well
as in designing, he puUished masterly engrav-
ings on copper undor his own name, whereof
the painted originals are to be seen in numben,
partly at the Town Hall in Nurembei^ and
partly in the Electoral Palace at Landshut.

"Mention must be made with considerable
praise of the Act that our artist painted in
oils in this same city of Nuremberg the upper
part of a room, at the end of a gallery, m t^
honourable Mr. Volkamer's pleasure-garden. He
pictured it as if the room were still open and
unfinished, the carpenters still busy at work
putting in the joists, girders, and planks.
Others are erecting the roof-timber, all against
an open sky, with clouds and tnrds flying
about, all done so true to nature that many
have been deceived, and mistaken the inuige for
fact, which error is fallen into particularly by
such as take the same point of view which our
George Pencz had chosen.

"He engraved very many excellent works
upon copper, which should be carefully collected
and preserved by amateurs for the improvenMat
and education of the young, for many of whom
they form a most desirable ohjtct for study.

146 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

His best works he issued in the yews 1530,
1540, and 1550. They are taken fixMB dtt
Old and New Testaments and the Gospeli;
further, there arc histories — the 'Seven Acti
of Charity,' the 'Story of Joseph in Egypt,'
'Tobit,' the 'Good Samaritan,' the 'Story of
Dives'; again, taken from secular histwy—
' Tomiris,' ' Lucrece,' ' Medea,' ' Titus Manlhis,'
* Marcus Curtius.' He was so fiunous m r«
draughtsman that the well-known mastor, MMif
grever, copied his * Four Evangelists ' most
painstakingly. And since it would take too
long to enumerate all his feats, I will only
refer the reader more especially to his 'Swge
and Assault of Carthage by Night,' aad
repeat in fine, that the work <^ George JMifll
is a nunual for all arts, by wfaidi ^
may gain for him, as he did for them, a
never-fading laurel-wreath of art, virtut^ mi
honours."

Pencz was born about 1500, and it has been
conjectured with much plausibility that he wu
Dftrer's pupil and apprentice, the "George**" wis
married Dfirer's mud in 1524. In tltt ftlkNrii|
year he was banbhed with the Behsms, but
allowed to return within the outskirts of the
city before them. In 1 5 32 he was even ajqMintsd

THE "UTTLE MASTERiV 147

official painter to the City Council, He is
supposed to have visited Italy in 1530, and
again in 1539, and also to have painted at
Landshut It is more probable that he was a
pupil of Giulio de* Gianuzzi (Giulio Romano),
at Mantua, than of M. A. Raimondi at Rome
and Bologna. Besides the mural paintings
already mentioned, there are easel pictures by
him in the Galleries of Basle (a "Cimon and
Pcro" in the J. Nestcl Collection), Berlin,
Breslau, Brunswick, Darmstadt (moat of these
are portraits), Dresden (fragments of an "Adora-
tion of the Magi"), Florence (Uffizi), Karb-
ruhe, Nuremberg (a "St. Jerome with a Skull "),
Paris (a "St. Jerome with the Lion," in the
Louvre), Schleisshcim ("Venus and Cupid,"
"Death of Lucrcce"), Stockholm ("King
Ferdinand I.," and another "Cimon and Pern"
in the University CoUections), Stuttgart, Vienna,
Windsor (a copy of Holbein'a «D. Enam'^s"),
and a few other places. Finally, Duke /Vlbrecht
of Prussia summoned him to Kcn-gsberg, where
he became court painter. He is said to have
died soon after, in the year 1550.

" LuKAs Krvo was alto one <^ the fonmott
engravers upon copper in Germany, which art

148 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

at that time merited praise among us above
the Italians and French — though there wot
enough of ^ese, I trow — and we possessed a
great number of such engravers who ornamettsd

and beautified the work of goldsmiths by means
of the burin and of etching. Iviany a"iateurs
cherish to this day silver plate decorated by
Hans Sebald Beham and this Krug. He livec
about the year 1516. As for the rest, his woric
is not frequently met with; the most important
pieces are a 'Crucifixion,' a 'Nativity' (a night
piece), an * Adoration of the Magi,' and a few
similar plates, which one comes across here tad
there in the possession of amateurs."

About Krug we know scarcely more than
what Sandrart tells us, only we must cwrect
his Christian name, as Sandrart gives it, into
Ludwig. And NeudOrffer reports: "I codd
not imagine what knowledge this Ludwig Krug
lacked in the way of silver and gold work,
drawing, engraving, cutting, enamelling, chasing,
painting, portraying." " Hanns Koburger bought
up his work piece by piece." " What he carved
in stone, cameo, and iron, was esteemed even by
the Italians. He had a fine head fat philoso-
phising." He was freed of the guild in 1522,
anil died in 1532.

THE "UTTLE MASTERS" 149

The fact is, the lives of most of these artists are
almost a blank to us, and what we know about
them has been |^ieaned from thdr work, the
dates and signattires upon this wwk, and an
occasional brief entry in some munidpal tester
or other official document. It is with delight,
therefore, that we hail an instance where we get
somewhat more satisfactory information about
at least three of these masters, the brothers
Beham and their colleague Pencz. What we
learn afiected their life but a than time, and
it has so little direct bearing upon their art,
that it would scarcely be worth wUle to ex-
patiate upon the subject, were it not for the
fact that the tale divulges the character of these
men. As an explanation of a man's art, any
sort of light thrown upon his ren.' character
will always be of value.

Towards the end of the first quarter <^ the
sixteenth century, the religious views upheld by
Carlstadt and Munzer had spread at Nuremberg,
in spite of their being decreed heretica'. by the
authorities in power. It appears that, besides
publishers and printers, artists were the princi-
pal converts of the dissenters. In October and
December 1524, two (Munters, Greifienbei^ and
Hans Platner, wore summoned hefott th« justicn

150 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

to give an account of themselves as to their re-
ligious view*. They seem to have been dropped ;
but on January lo, 1525, an entry mforms ut
that the two pamters Beham were dted in the
same manner. Two days later the recwds alicady
enumerate three painters ; George Pencz had been
added ; and, from now on, the three are always
spoken of as " the three godless painters " until
the a£fkir is finally settled. They are cross-
examined again on the 14th of the mondi,
tnd it appeared that a certain Johann Dak.
schoolmaster at St. Sebaldus, was mixed up wkh
the matter. His case was thereupon invesdgated
first, the painters remaining in custody until it
was over. One of their cross-examinations todt
place in the torture-chamber, but no violence of
any kind was applied. The move was only uken
for the sake of sobering down the " mdeftctors,"
since they had been rather refractory all aloi^.

We possess copies of the various affidavits, but
do not know in which order they were given.
The charges against the painters were atheism,
opposition to the clergy and magistracy, and
association with bad characters.

Sebald Beham avowed that it would in nowiic
trantpire that he had misled anybody widi etil
precepts. However, so much of the charge w$s

THE "LITTLE MASTERS" 151

true, namely, that he had discussed the points
upon which he wa» doubtful with a number of
comrades, and had made pUun the nature of his
doubts to them. The prindpal one of these was,
that he could not believe that the wine and bread
really turn into the body and blood of Christ.
He had so far been unable to convince himself
of this being true, and must patiently wait till
it please God to enlighten him. All the sermons
he had heard had doiw lum no good ; nor had
Luther's or anybody elte'a serm<un led him
astray, for he was always, and had always been,
of this opinion. True, he had Uken Holy Com-
munion at the Augustine Church recently; but
it mattered not, in his heart he did not believe
in it — so much so, that ever since he had been
sorely troubled whether he had not been very
much in the wrong to have gone to Holy
Communicm at all ; and he is aware of the fact
that this really casts him out of the Church.
He is doubtful as to baptism, and will neither
commend nor condemn it. There is no special
virtue in water.

He does not admit having made use <£
improper discourse, and feels mire that notlung
of the kind can be proved againtt him. The
"bad characten'* he had aasodated mth were

153 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTiSTS

the schoolnuMter of St Sebaldus, George Pena,
and the son of Vitus the glaner.
Fitttlly he begs, if they can correct his nan

in a way to convince him, let them come and do
it, and he will gladly hear and accept all they say.

Barthel, the younger brother, goes far beyond
all this. He is more decided, and terser in what
he repudiates. Besides, he discloses Utopian views
wluch have a modem ring in them ; for he chal-
lenges the then accepted codes of right oi possci
«on and right of retribution as inflicted by man.

Barthel says it is impossible for him to believe
that the body and blood of Chi 1st are actually
present in the bread and wine at the Holy Com-
munion, nor does he put any faith in the rite of
baptism ; and no one can talk him out oi this,
may he listen to ever so many; and ev«n 'd he
should say that he believed in all this he would
be lying at heart. He esteems all of it mere
hu:. ^a trifling; that is what he believes at the
bottom of his heart ; and no more can he believe
in Holy Writ. He says that he has talked over
the nutter with many people, and also attesdad
the famous Osiander's sermons, now gmi^ on fat
two years, but he has never been persuaded into
belief. He does not see how it is that what the
preachers say seems to satisfy the people, for it

THE "LITTLE MASTERS** 153

re»Ily amounts to no more than mere trifling.
Consequently he does not see any good in their
preac'vng. This is tlie 0{»moD which he intends
to abide by. He is induced to tike this course
on account of sll the lies current, and will wut
till the truth appear.

Thereupon he was told that it had come to the
ears of the Council that he and his brothers had
proclaimed that every one ought to stop woric,
ami that there should be an equal distribution oi
property amoi^ all men, and that he contemned
public authorities. Barthel repfied he knew 6i
no master above him except God Almighty. If
brother turns against brother and He punish
them, every one is in duty bound to obey one
another, and one brother then must punish the
other. But nowhere is it written, that if your
brother ans and has cmifesaed his wickedness to
you, that you have a right to pby the rector, and
that the penalty to be inflicted be a hand for a
a hand, an eye foe an eye, &c.'

' The scribe, in trying to note down the ipsirsima verba of
Beham, has evidently muddled hit sentences. The sense of
his objection, however, is clear, and b* means to say tliat,npoa
the direct conunand of God, man most submit to his brother
and suffer punishment at his brother's hands ; but even Holy
Writ does not authorise any one to take the matter of retri-
bution in his own hands, and then to inflict so serious a
poaiihment as a hand for a hand, an eyt for an eye, &c.

154 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Lying in prison had the effect of weakening
these painters somewhat, and they declared them-
selves willing to accept instroctim and to lune
their misbelief corectcd. But alter tlus wm
attempted, they were heard to say at the door:
" To be sure, there has been enough talk ;
very little has been proven ; " and again, " that
they had given the preachers some nuts to crack
that would keep their jaws busy for two years
or better." Acccmiingly, it was seen that they
had in reality lost none of their rtfnctonnm.

To bring the afiair to a close, probably, lb
questions were put to them, to which a neat nd
unevasive answer was perempt(»7. The (jati-
tions were :

1 . Do you believe in God ?

2. What do you think of Jesus Christ ?

3. Do you believe the Holy Gospel and dK
Word of God as laid down in Holy Writ f

4. What do you think of the Sactanmit of
the Altar (Holy Communion) ?

5. What do you think of Baptism ?

6. Do you believe in secular authority, and do
you admit the Nuremberg Council to be your
lord, as far as life and property and outmmi
questions are concerned ?

Pencz replied to — i. That he has some feefiag

THE "LITTLE MASTERS" 155

on the point, but in truth he does not really know
what to think of this same God ; 2. He does not
believe in Christ ; 3. He does not believe Holy
Scripture ; 4. He does not reck<m Holy Com-
munion fat anything ; 5. Nor Btpdsm for any-
thing ; 6. He knows of no lord above him but
God alune.

Barthel Beham's answers were — to 1. Yes; 2.
Thinks nothing of Christ ; 3. Does not know
whether it be holy ; 4. Reckons it for naught ; 5.
Naught ; 6. No. Sebald Beham concurs with lus
brother. A certain Sebald Baumhawer, who hu
been taken up in the company of these three,
gives rather modified answers, but in the end
they amount to about the same thing. L. Krug
revoked and promised to behave.

The Council now referred the matter to a
committee of five preachers and three doctors of
law. The three punters had been imprisoned
for fourteen days.

The preachers voted for banishing the pMntert,
because of their obstinacy, the bad example
they were setting, and the dangers likely to
result therefrom. They further deduced some
reasons for their sentence out of Scripture. The
lawyers spoke for lemmqf. They said prison
aeems to exercise a wholMonw influence upon

156 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

the three painters, they will weaken and return
to orthodox views. They have been punished
sufficiently. Let them be dismissed with a warn-
ing and then be watched. If they do not mend,
it will always be time enough for the Coundl to
resort to serious measures. But the theologian set
up a !) jwl at this. People, they claimed.will spread
it about that the painters have been coerced; they
will gain sympathy and get a following, and the
Council will repent its leniency soon enough and
yet too late. Thmfore let these men be bsniriied
from the community. Finally they summed up
their opinion in a document submitted to ^
Council, wherein six reasons were given for pro-
nouncing the sentence of banishment, to wit :

" Firstly, because these painters showed them-
selves not only on the first but also the second
and third day, and in spite of all warabigs
and instructions, atheistic and heathetush to t
hitherto unparalleled degree; and that, too^
coupled with contempt for the preachers and
their secular authorities.

" Ajjain, their action and condition has become
public and has caused much disturbance, which is
not to be rondered at, since it is not a matter of
body but cf soul. Now many people in diii
town secretly incline towards heresy, and if dMe

THE "UTTLE MASTERS" 157

(the painters) be dismissed unpunished, many
folk will gather around them, consult them as to
their fate and thdbr views, and be nusled in the
end out of sheer curiosity. For these (painters)
are well known, and it is not to be hoped of
them that they will keep quiet, for they are
mighty uppish and renowned before others on
account of their overbearing. Therefore, it
should be borne in mind what pernicious poison
will be disseminated by them.

*' Thirdly — It is u> be grievously feared that
dread of impriscmment rather than the Vford
of God weakened these men, and their heart
will stand after liberation just where it stood
before. For when they were dismissed (from
cross-examination) one was heard to say secretly
to the other : ' They talk a good deal to us, but
let them prove it.* Thus, it is to be feared that
the last things (i.r. which they will do) '.vill be
worse than the first.

"Fourthly — These three have denied owing
duty to the authorities in power; even the
schoolmaster (see above — Johann Denk) never
went to such an extreme, and he in his opinions
was by far not so athnstic as these three. Yet
he was banished. Then why should these enjoy
any privilege ?

158 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

" Fifthly— To the majority of people here, these
painters and their affair are so odious that it is
to be feared that they may be killed if they be
dismissed. Thus worse matters would come of
bad, and one mischief would be hunted down
by another.

" Sixthly— It is to be feared that if they be
allowed to remain, numerous other people will
stray from the right path, and it will be
necessary to correct them and preach to them
all singly, which would be an insufferabl? burden,
not only for the preachers but also for the secular
authorities."

It has already been stated that the theologians
prevailed, and that consequently all three of the
painters had to leave Nuremberg for a time.

CHAPTER VI

THE TWO CRANACHS

"LuKAS Crakach the elder, born in Cranach
within the princely Episcopate of Bamberg, arose
in the time of Albrecht DOrer, and was summoned
to the Electoral Court of Saxony on account of
his famed skill in art ; here, too, his best works
have remained down to this day. He was par-
ticularly neat and pleasing in Painting as well
as Draughtsmanship, and was very clever in
both, as is shown by his perfection in pnuse-
wmhy mythological subjects, nudes, Inblical
pictures, poetiod themes, and others. Agun, he
was strong in portraits and in life-size half-
figures, for example ' Lucrece,' old men, women,
and the like, which he clothed alia moderna, and
painted deftly, each according to the particular
charms of its sex. Such are still highly esteemed
tt the Elector's Court, and the master lumself
received plentifully the highest favours of this
gracious Court during his life-time.
" Among other things he did a naked * Lv .«ce *

>S9

i6o STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
standing, life-size, one of his foremost worh,
and now in the gallery of the Electoral FUace
at Munich, along with other rare thingiL i&
panel with the 'St. Wilibald and St. Walbuig'
is still particularly esteemed by his Grace the
Venerable Marquard, Bishop of Eichstadt, who
was ever naore than the father of all virtues
and learning. Soaie of his works, further, ait
to be seen in the Imperial Galleries at Vmm
and Prague and elsewhere. In my cdke6mm
art-cabinet there is a • Lucrece * with a poniard ia
her hand, clothed in a garment of fur which ii
very cleverly painted, and represented as hca^
about to shorten her life by a thrust with the
dagger. On account of his fine understanding,
he was loved and cherished on all sides, wti
finally relinquished life at Weimar, mm 15^
on the 1 6th of October, in the eighty-fine
of his life.

He was succeeded by his son, likewise calM
Lokas, who seems to have inherited his fiitho's
skill along with hit name, since he was esteoMid
almost as much as his father. He was bom
at Wittenberg, in Saxony, wheie im mfmiB
ftargmnaster, and where he died upon tlb ifil
of January, in the year 1586."

The elder Cranach was bom in Jie year t^fl,

* mm ifmH/statHi'l
THE REST ON THK fLKSHT
(Btriim)

I

I

THE TWO CRANACHS i6i

in the town from which he derives his name, and
which to-day is spelt Kronach. His family name
has not been asceittined; his father teems to
have been a painter, but nothing of hu work
is known. Nor do we know much about Lukas
the elder prior to his thirty-second year, except
that he seems to have visited Vienna before the
close of the fifteenth century and painted a
"Crucifixion" for the Scotch Convent there.
The earliest date on any of his authenticated
pictures is 1504. He waa already married to
Barbara Brengbier, the daughter of a Burgomaster
of Gotha, when he was summoned in the follow-
ing year by Elector Frederick the Wise to Saxony,
and occupied with work at Torgau and Lochau!
Very soon after he settled at Wittenberg as Saxon
court-painter.

Early in the year 1508 he was gnuted arau,
these being "a black snake, with two black bat'a
wings, a red coronet, and in the mouth a golden
ring, with a ruby in it." This he had already
used as his artist's mark for some time. Towards
die end of the same year his patron sent him to
Emperor Maximilian, in the Lowlands, in order
to parade with the {skill of hia court-paintw.
There Lukas the elder punted the portnit of
Charles V., then eight year* old.

1 6a STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

In 15 19 he was tf^inted a member of the
Mtttiidpal Council at ^ittenbeng, and this mt
repeated in 1521, 1522, 1525, and 1534. b

1520 he bought an apothecary's shop near dif
market-place, and with it the privilege of selling
sweet wines. He also had a printing and book
shop, and his studio was full of prentices and
scholan. He became a great friend of Luther's,
and may be nid to luve quite turned IVoteuaat
in 1529, the year when the Protestant fmrm «l
worship was practically established throi^^oiic
Saxony.

His patron died in 1525, but his successors,
Electors John and John Frederick, the latter
ahready a generation younger than Cranach,
continued to hold him in high favour. In
1537 he was elected Burgomaster of Wutm'
berg; in 1540 for the second time. His many
occupations prevented him from executing afl
works with his own hands. He had what one
might call a sort of picture factory, like Rubens
later on, where pictures and replicas were painted
from his sketches and designs, many of whidi
he will scarcely have touched. At this dme he
changed hb mark; the dragcm now has dfoof^
ing bird's wings.

On the 24th of April 1547, Elector John

1

1

i S! < 'KlrS OF 'iHKM A AR IIS

!• i-^i-, he 'w- ijp., 't...d a member .
Muivci, -i' t.<; .ii.il it Wittc:«tx"-g, aiul
r-v^-at^i '5-^' '525- -ind i^U

:!!.»rk- :-pb .. -it-' a the -.■riv? -n: ni

. . -t \s ■■ ■ ir- -. . had a I'-ift'OL' a-

■ • • . ■ .• li f il' ' i' .

; • ■. n '^r: 'r;,-ii.: 'it ' .1;

. • . T ive li'.iitr tjrr.fd

, V: • t^'ic Prote-^raiu t

•,r - hi vv3«- ii ! '■■ esUi T.slied thv',

i/.ri' I ; . : J ' - ' =

.ii-,>.- ••• •. ' ■ • ' ' vj-.r..r man (.
.oii'in- .-i 'T-i-i '"':ti •"^''■^'^ favi-
: : •; ■ i;> eii.>^: - K^'^y '''"-^

berg- in 1 s4C tor the svjorv' t ine. it.
r«c-.upnti--n<? }>reve---'-w H>m t'--: -■xtc
>.<- .V :"'.vr. .i.ui.'-- H^- had \
• ■ .-.'t (if factor- , ilk..

' . ■ i r 'pli' us vv^r

r , , , .. ... t,,: i.:i-si;z!;s, -nany

^< s.r.cU *!"*'e loached. At th:s
cr.i-.'--; hii mark; the dragon now ha^

On ..- 24ih of April 1547, Elect',

THE TWO CRANACHS 163

Frederick: was can ar'^d by Charles V. in the
Battle at Mii i )erg. The Elector summoned
Cranach, in if'jO, to Augs arg, and thence he
went along with his patron in voluntary cap-
tivity to Innsbruck, where he remuned until
both were liberated in 1552. He then accom-
panied his n.aster to Weimar, working here,
as he had been at Innsbruck, and died on the
3rd of March, 1554, at Weimar.

Lukas Oanach the younger was a second son.
The first aoa's name was John. He was bom
about 1503, was full of promiae, but died young,
while studying at Bologna, m the year 1536.
Lukas the younger was bom on the 4th of
October 15 15, at Wittenberg, was of course a
pupil of his father, and will have been freed of
the guild when he entered his father's studio in
1537. He did, in fact, succeed his father as
head of a school, principal of the studio, and in
all the municipal positions and honours, even in
the use of his artist's mark. He died on the
25th of January 1586, at Weimar, whither he
had escaped from Wittenberg, on account of the
pestilence prevailing there.

The establishment of a school has done much
to ruin the personal reputation of Lukas the
elder. The enormous factorT-like output has

1 64 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

lowered the standard of the work which passes
under his name. We obtun a fair idea of kii
truly remarkable powers from first to last iriM
we glance at work which he executed altogetlMr
himself, such as the "Crucifixion" at Schleiw-
heim, or the fine " Rest upon the Flight," hig
earliest dated and signed picture, now at Berlin,
and the splendid " Self-Portrait " at the age rf
seventy-seven, in the Uffizi at Florence, one of
his latest (M'oductions. He is remarkahia Ar
his inclination to loveliness, or even pmttinsil,
rather than grandeur or beauty, and for lu
thoroughly middle-class ideal when he seeks to
popularise mythological subjects, or pursues tk
painting of the nude.

Works by Lukas Cranach the elder, or at
least such hailing from his studio, are to be nk
with in almost every public gallery from 9l.
Petersburg ("Venus and Cupid") to Madrid
("Hunting Pieces"), from London ("Half-
length Portrait of a Young Woman "), to Buda-
pest (" Christ and the Woman taken in adultery").
The many replicas of his queer conception of the
" Judgment of Paris " (in elaborate iixteeiitlMi»>
tury costuming) belong to his bett-knoini woA.
He executed a few engravings upon copper, with
rather a weak, undignified burin. But his wood*

THE TWO CRANACHS 165

cut woric is important, in portraiture and in
religious subjects. The style of his woodcuts
corresponds to that of his paintings. He is one
of the earliest masters of chiaroscuro woodcuts,
seeming to have used two blocks mily, and to
have {Minted high lights with gold and stiver.

One of the most interesting topics connected
with Lukas Cranach the elder is a discussion of
what work he did prior to 1 504, the date upon
the above-mentioned '* Rest upon the Flight into
Egypt." Many various theories have been
broached and works churned for him, that
have hitherto been connected with the School of
Ratisbon Altdorfer ") or that of Aschaffenhui|;
(" Griinewald "). As no definite results have
as yet been reached, this, being still a matter of
criticism, does not fall within the scope of the
present volume, after the attention of ::he reader
has once been called to the existence of such a
controversy.

Luku the younger's style greatly resembled
that of his father. His coloration may be said
to have been more brilliant. He was, above all,
a good painter of portraits, as various specimens
of his craft in the Gallery and Historical Museum
at Dresden, and in the castle at Moritzburg go
to prove. The Dresden Gallery further (veserm

1 66 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

two large subjects of " Hercules and the Pigmies"
by his hand. Others are to be found in Annaberg
in Stxony (" St. Anne's Church "), in the Museum
at Briunschwdg, at Dessau ("The Lord's Supper"
in the Palace Church), in the Museums at Leipsic
and Nuremberg, in the mun church at Witten-
bei^, &c.

CHAPTER VU

THB TWO HOLBEIM8

"The ancient philosophers often violently dis-
puted the point, whether the character of one
man is enabled by peculiarly happy cimsteUations
of the start, or by the good ami weU>tempered
atmosphere of some country or other, to grasp
a thing well and with ease, to which another
cannot attain with utmost perseverance, pains, and
work ; and since experience had taught them
that in some cities and countries most excellent
artists indeed are bom, yet at the «me time
awkward, gawkish fellowt— and these latter, t»*
deed, by ftur OKire numerout— «o they htve
seriously doubted that the atmosphere exercises
any influence at all. Quite so the amateurs of
stars have come to just the same understanding,
seeing that under the ascendancy of one and
the same star altogether dissimilar people are
bom. Righteous ChmtiaM, in truth, rtther
ascribe the greater abilities of one nuw over
another to the Creator of all bong, thfoa|^

1 68 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

whose Grace one man is gifted abc/e his
neighbour.

" This introduction is occasioned by the famous
artist, Hans Holbein, because he is said to have
originated in the raw and pretty dreary country
of Switzerland. Carel van Mander supposed
that the artist was born about the year 1498 at
Basle. But the * Book of the Painters' Gild at
Basle • gives us more precise information, namely,
that Hans Holbein the elder, who was like-
wise a good painter, lived round about the snd
year at Augsburg, where he was a citizen, mi
removed his family subsequently to Basle, where
he taught his own craft to his son, the younger
Hans Holbein, whom he had enlisted as a prentice
in the Gild book. This is furthei authenticated
by Hans the younger's portrait drawings of his
father and of this one's brother, who was abo a
painter (both of which originals lie before me)
and upon which tl jsc words are to be found :
• Effigy of Hans Holbein the elder, Painter ; ' and
upon the other : ' Sigmund Holbein, Painter and
Brother of the elder.'

"Several pieces by the hand of the elder
Holbein may be found at Augsburg, one of wl^
was bought by the annatear. Von Walbeiy, l«i
several thousuids.

THE TWO HOLBEINS 169

"A very big painting of his, representing the
' Annunciation,* is to be found in St. Catherine's
Nunnery there ; and in another very large panel
he represented, with figures of half the size of
life, the whole of the life tnd converaon of
St. Paul, most carefully painted, and signed with
these words: Prasens opus complevit Johannes
Holbein civis Augustanus. In another biblical
picture, in which there is a bell, he signed him-
self upon it thus : ' Hans Holbein, 1499.'"

" Now, as to the younger Holbein, he finished
various excellent worics in his native town, Basle,
of which some may be seen at the Town Hall
there, among them the ' Passion,' in a series of
eight pieces of admirable invention, with deli-
cate landscapes, clever observance of night and
day light, and so masterly in coloration and all
manners of craft, that nothing more perfect by
his hand may be found elsewhere. When I, in
the year 1644, was painting the portnut of Vm
Grace the late Duke Maximilian of Bavaria, of
sacred memory, and amusing him with an account
of the excellence of these pieces while he was
sitting for me, he was graciously pleased to feel
$0 strong a desire to see them, that he expressly
sent a messenger to buy them for the price at
which they were to be had. Suice, however,

I70 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
this messenger did not go to work about the
thing cleverly, he had to return without having
accomplished anything, beyond acquainting the
town with the high yalue of these panek
Further, there u « very clever 'Danee of
Peasants' by him on the Fiah Market, betides
the famous 'Dance of Death,' which shows
with the help of many figures that Death rapes
all mankind regardless of their station, not caring
for the Power of Popes, Emperors, and Kings,
nor the riches of the mighty, nor the simpUdty
and poverty of the country-folk; yet, indeed,
he does not spare the child in the womb, heedi
not the grief of parent, nor any more the fed-
hardiness of soldiers who scoff at him, as these
pieces, issued as woodcuts, clearly discover.
Further, there is by him, even there, a naked
body of 'Our Lord descended from the C-oss,'
a painting for which looo ducats have been
offered, although it does not represent his
common manner, as well as others of his
works. Besides these there are at Basle por-
traits of his wife and child painted by him,
til in all, perhaps, twenty painted pieces,
besides many drawings upon paper, which are
held in high esteem, and were bought by the
magistrates at a high price, in order th»t they

THE TWO HOLBEINS

171

might ever be shown thire to art>amateurs as
things of great value.

"As far as I know he never was in Italy, but
became acquainted with Erasmus of Rottadam
at Basle, who, when he had recognised Holbdn's
excellence, esteemed him and sought to further
him. Therefore Holbein painted his portrait
so skilfully, that it could have been improved
upon by no one, whereupon Erasmus wrote to
his schoolfellow and intimate friend, Thcnas
More, Chancellw cS England, recommending
this Holbein to lum, and bqrging him to help
him into the service of his King Hemy VIII.,
a particular amateur the Arts, and gave
him the portrait, along with a letter testifying
to its great likeness. This pleased Holbein
well enough, since he had at home a bad
housewife, who was always quarrelling and
scolding; so he was glad to travel thither.

" Upon arriving with the letter and portrait
as a proof of his skill at the Qiancellor*s»
Thomas More, in England, he was warmly
welcomed by him, who was greatly pleased by
the portrait of Erasmus. He retained him for
about three years, the King not knowing any-
thing about it; and he had him always work
by himself, lest, if he should let the King

rji STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

see or know anything of Holbein, he would
no longer be able to supply his wants. Thui
he painted portraits of the Chancellor, of bis
wife, and of all his friends, until, finally, TkoMi
More, having satisfied his own desues, ai it
were, invited the King one day to a magiuficent
banquet in his house, and showed him the
capital paintings of this artist. The King con-
fessed he had never seen any the like bcfcre,
once he now saw many persons lAim k
knew, not otherwise as if they were staailf
alive and in the flesh before him. Whe* Mate
noticed the pleasure the King was taking ia
these pictures, he offered him all of them u t
present, saying : ' All of them are at your
service,' whereupon the King, accepting them
with thanks, inquired: 'Can one not hate tbe
master lumself?' and when More had namul
' Yes,' and had also Holbein brought beflm the
King, the King was so delighted that he returned
the presents to More, saying : ' Now that I have
the master himself, I shall eai,;iy fill my desires.'

" In this manner the King kept Holbdn in
lugh esteem, and was delighted to haf* lo
excellent an artist about him, and he had Um
paint many portraits which are still to be seen
at London. In fact, the favour of ^ King

THE TWO HOLBEINS 173

towards Holbein was steadily on the increase,
since he amused him in all ways, which partiality
on the part of the King is proved sufficiently
by the following story. It happened one day
that an Engluh e«rl came to vint Holbrin,
because he wm curious to see his art, or that
upon which he just happened to be working,
which, however, did not at all suit Holbein,
because he was portraying from the life, and
wanted to keep it secret. He therefore begged
the Earl two or three times, and very politely,
to excuse him, and he would gladly attend him
some other time, and not to take it ill. But
no matter what kindly excuses Holbein offered,
the Earl did not desist, and wanted to force
his way upstairs, deeming it that his person
deserved more respect at the hands of a painter.
But Holbein did not quite understand him, and
after he had warned htm once more to relinquish
his plan, the Eari perseming, however, Hdbdn
caught hold of him and threw him down the
stairs, who, in falling, cried out, 'The Lord
have mercy upon me ! ' His retinue and servants,
alarmed at the bad fall, were busy with their
master, so that Holbein double-locked his door
in the meanwhile, and getting out of the window
in the roof, he rushed to the King, b^ging for

174 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

pardon, without relating what had happened,
although the King inquired several timet. How-
ever, his Majesty granted him pardon befon
he had learned what it was all about. After
he had been informed of the affair, he feigned
to have repented that he had granted so ill »
pardon, and said he should never dare to do
such a thing again, bidding him not to leave,
but to remain in an adjoining chamber, until
it transpired how matten lay with the Eari.
Presently this one was brought in on a Ittttr,
all bruised and bound up, and complaining
bitterly of the painter before the King. He
made out his case as best he could, and swayed
considerably from the truth, which the King did
not fail to notice. At the end of his say he
petitioned the King to punish Holbein as :aving
raised his hand against his person. When he
noticed ho' very little the King was inclined
his way, h. lade it plain that he would seek
his revenge himself, whereupon the King wa?
wroth at the want of respect shown by the Ei
who wanted to be judge in his own suit, ar. '
did not sufficiently heed the decision of the
King. Threateningly he exclaimed: 'Now tht
matter no longer concerns Holbein, but the
dignity of my Royal person. Do you think

THE TWO HOLBEINS 175

that I care so little for the man? I tell you,
Earl, I can make seven Earls out of seven
peasants, if it so please me, but out of seven
Earls not a nngle Holbdn/ Whereupon the
Earl was frightened, besought his King's pardon,
and vowed to act in accordance with his plea-
sure; and the King commanded him not to
dare to try and revenge himself upon Holbein
in any manner, nor to engage others to do it,
for anything that happened to him, he, the
King, would take as having been directed jainst
his own Royal person.

" During the period of his services there he
painted the portrait of King Henry VIII., life-
size, so well that every one who looks at the
picture is astonished, since it seems to live as if
it moved its head and limbs. Again, there is in
Whitehall PkUce there a work which pruses iti
master, and jx-oves that he was truly an Apelles.
He also painted King Henry's three childrm
—Edward, Mary, and Elizabeth — which may
be seen there, and many of the principal folk,
men and women, of the realm. And in the
Surgeons' Hall, at London, there is an exquisite
pirce by this hand, in the room when the muter
o'i the Guild or Society of Surgeoos, receives the
privileges. In it King Henry, Urge as life, is

176 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTBR

seated on a magnificent throne, with a carpet
under his feet ; before him the said master kuKk
and hands the King the draft of their privileges,
which one of the retinue dutifully receives; and
although sorae believe that Holbein did not finish
this piece himself, but that some one else com-
pleted it after his death, yet it is quite certain
that he who did so, be he who he may, at least
approached very closely to Holbein, so that one
cannot be easily distinguished from the other.

" Very many excellent portraits by his hand
are likewise to be seen in various palaces of the
nobility, in such numbers that it is a matter for
wonder how he could ever have finished so many,
besides what he drew for the goldsmiths, paintcn,
engravers, woodcutters, and what he enhqiMd
in wax. For the rest, he painted in oiii and in
water-colours ; nor was he less skilful in minia-
ture, which, indeed, he was not acquainted with
before he came to the King; but seeing one
Lucas, who was very excellent therein, he tried
hia hand at it, and since he was stronger in
draughtsmanship, posing, and general undo^
standing, he presently excelled thk Lua» m
much as the sun excels the moon. Further, there
are by him, at London, two masteriy pieces in
water-colours— one • The Triumph of WaitK

THE TWO HOLBEINS 177

the other * The State of Poverty.' Wealth is
depicted by Pluto or Dis, in the shape of an old,
bald man seated in an antique, ornamental, gilt
chariot, diving with one hand in a basket of gold,
and scattering gold tad nlver coins with the
other. Near him ire Fortune and Fame ; beride
him in the chariot are treasures and moneys,
and behind the chariot there are various people
struggling to get some of the money. The rich
lords of antiquity — like Croesus, Midas, &c —
walk beside the chariot, which is drawn by four
beautiful hones accompanied by u many female
figures, whose names are written dtlMr near thdr
heads or at their feet. All of the figures are life-
size, faces, hands, and feet in flesh-colour, the
garments in various hues, and everything very
natural. The other piece, 'The State of
Poverty,' is depicted thus: An old, famished,
wan woman is seated upon a rickety waggon on
t bundle of straw, under a sort oip hut with a
battered, torn roof, looking ray miserable, and
clothed in a wretched, tattered gown. Two
oxen and two asses draw her waggon, which some
meanly dressed men and women precede. The
peasant and the artisan that lead the procession
hold thdr carpenter's squares, hammers, flails.
In front of the waggon Hope is seated, raising

178 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

her face heavenwards full of emotion, with many
further detuls. To cut it duMt, this work is
full of skill and thought, elalxmted poedcally
and philosophically, ornamental, and dittiB-
guished by its draughtsmanship as well as its
composition. These two pieces he had made,
and Federigo Zucchero, when he was in England
about the year 1574, said of them, on account of
the great care employed in thdr punting, that
they were as good as if Rafiaello d'Urbino lumailf
had d<me them.

"Further, Holbein painted the portrait of a
countess, dressed in black and white satin, life-
size, which formerly was kept in the residence of
My I lord Pembroke, which, when Federigo saw it
along with other painters, pleased him to rach
a degree that 1m said he had ncrer hdmid b
Rome a piece done so slulfiilly and neatly; ml
he departed filled with admiration. It happened
that a great amateur of art, called Andrew vtn
Loo, was in London some time ago, who, buying
up everything by Holbein's hand that he could
lay hands upon, gathered together a great number
of wondrous portraits by thu artist. Among
them there was a very masterly pduitingt dMi
half life-size picture of the King's astroaoMr,
surrounded by many astronomical 'uMnmm^

THE TWO HOLBEINS 179

one Magister Nicholas. He was a German or
Dutchman, and had lived going on for thirty
years in EngUuiJ, when ttw Kii^, for pastime,
once ukcd him how it happened thtt he couldn't
speak Engli^ better. * But/ he answered, ' crav-
ing your Majesty's pardon, how could any one
learn English in thirty years ? ' At which the Kii^
and all the bystanders laughed heartily.

"This aforesaid Van Loo possessed further
by this hand, the portrait of Lord Crawhall (?),
about a foot and a half high, and of the learned
and famous Erasmus of Rotterdam, of yAach
has been reported above, how very like it waa.
Besides these, this same amateur possessed a
large water-colour which displayed Thomas
More, his wife, son, and daughters, and which
was worthy of pruse as the very eptome
of his art, for its compouti<m alone if for
nothing else. The renowned Earl of Amndel,
who spared ndthor gold nor rilver if anytiiing
by Holbein was to be had, collected a whole
gallery full of his paintings, likewise whole
books full of drawings, partly done in pen and
ink and wash, partly drawn painstakingly mth
cross-hatching as if they had been engraved on
copper, partly enoited large in hhtk dialk
on paper--all <^ tbem mastttly and neat,

i8o STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

and in such numbers that I would not have
believed how one man could do so numy care-
fully executed biblical ami aecular pictures, aho
sttl:jects extracted from poetry, if I had Mt
seen them myself, and held them in my vwy
hands. In short, he was weL versed in almost
everything, and almost supcra. Rurally quick st
them all.

" The said Earl of Arundel showed me sevenl
times a little i6mo volume which this noble hand
had filled with drawings, in which waa coBtWMd
the whde of the 'Lord's Fasuon* on tmuOf-
two sheets. How small they were may casSf
be imagined ; still they were all executed most
painstakingly and neatly, just as if they were
miniatures, and among other things they showed
the figure of our Redeemer every time in the
shi^ a monk dad in hhsk. One day^as i
was speaking about this woric to the iiniiiy|Oil
Knight, Inigo Jones, servar* and ftmous archi-
tect of the King, he carried me into the King's
Cabinet, where he showed me, among other
things, a book which this artist had filled with
drawings of all manners of poniards, vessels,
ornaments, trinkeu and foliage, alto mouatingt
for scabbards, for sword -chains, belt% ballMi
for the King's mantle, hat-bandt, bucfclai ht

THE TWO HOLBEINS i8i

shoes as they were worn at that time, all
executed with the most careful finish ; and again,
designs for large and small spoons, gold and
silver plate, knife-handles and forks, salt-cellars,
large and smatl bo<A<overt, besides a deal of
other Royal Mnatnents, which it would take
very long to relate.

"Moreover, in the famous Art Cabinet of the
wealthy amateur and agent of the Swedish Court
at Amsterdam, the worshipful Mr. Michael Le
Blon, paintings, engravings, and drawmgs by his
hand were on view; for example, 'A Scholar*
near a fine building, with Death and his hour-
glass standing behind him, several portraits, a
'Venus and Cupid,' and other things, neatly
painted. Thereto I made this same gentleman
a present of Holbein's own portrait, excellently
done in a round, in memory of favours received
when I todc leave from him and travelled to
Germany. This geiMleman long ago ]^elded to
the earnest prayers of the book-keeper, John
LOssert, and* sold to him for 3000 florins a
panel with the 'Holy Mary' standing, her
Child on her arm, and a carpet beneath, upon
wWch several kneel before her, portrayed after
life; the magnificence of this picture appears
from the drawings that may be found in our

1 8a STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Sandrart's book of drawings. Besides which I
possess still more by this noteworthy hand,
Among other things a 'PaiMon' on folio iImiIi,
two {Meces of which seriet I lack, whidi hid
dittppeared before I got the set, but wlud
must be in somebody's possession still; and
I would gladly give 200 florins for them if I
could get them, so that I could show the set
of the ' Passion ' complete to anuteurs for the
fame of Holbdn.
**In fine, to ccmdense Us praise in a ft*
words, he was, while stiU among the ISmag,
esteemed so highly that the most prominent
Italians did not hesitate to introduce much that
he had invented into their own works, esped-
ally Michael Angelo Caravaggio, who buir:>wed
'Matthseus summoned by Christ horn tk
Customs,' also 'The Gamester swcefnag die
Coin from the Table,* and othor things. Thus
1 recollect that in the year 1627 the famous,
aged Paul Rubens, on his way to Utrecht, where
the virtuosi visited Honthorst and then passed
^ on to Amsterdam, was lost in speculation about
the little book with Holbein's • Dance of Daath'
in the boat under way, and {vaised it very
with die advice, that I, as a youi^ man, should
take the study of the book well to heart, for

THE TWO HOLBEINS 183

he himself oc^Mcd tlie book in his younger days,
u well M Tobbt Sdouner'ibook, ttking occanoo
therefrom to diseim most pkumdf Holbdn,
Albrecbt Dftrer, Slimmer, and the other old

German masters, the whole time we were on
our way. Finally, whoever sees his works, per-
force must admit that in all of them there is
beautiful invention, posing, and cmnpontim, and
that he MmagBA his pictures very &flerent!y
from other peinters. The mbjecit of his works
were mostly taken from old and excellent his-
tories, such as that of Anne, the mother of
Samuel, and Elkanah her husband, and the
announcement of Uriah's death to David.
Further, how Abisag comes to him, and
I&am's messenger brings a letter to SolomoB,
quite nnsterly and far above the modem
manner; how Solomon nts upon a throne, in
rich royal robes, with bare arms, like the people
of antiquity, as if they had been robbed, about
which picture the excellent Latin poe*, Nicholas
Borbonius, wrote nuny verses full of art, laud-
ing the artist. Many of Holbdn's drawings,
too, have been cc tsc'sntiously etched on ct^pper
by the hand of our Wencedaus Hollar, and
partly by Van der Borch, the Kii^ <^ England's
court-painter, prints of which are extant, for

i84 STQUES OF GEUMAN ARTISTS

example, the 'Queen of Shebe ' vm^ Sokmm
enthroned.

'* After this artist had conferred much ona.
ment by means of his noble art, he was fomi
10 take leave of this frail world, in w'-^ch I'very-
ihing is but ephemeral, as he died of „ ,>laguc
in London in the year 15 ^, in the fifty-sixtfc
vear of his age, entrustii^ his tuune indeed t(
eternity, Imt his body to an unascortaMed gnwe.
For hen ^he famous Marshal oi the Realm,
the Earl of Arundel, tried by every means to
discov- when and in wl.ich church he wu
buried, in order r onour him with a worthy
and precious torxb (ne failed). For havin?^ die^
at the time of the plague, and hav .ig been cast
m a connon grave with odier% as waa euatomary,
lua Lordship aad Excellency cobU not oMa
any precise information in spte of his canwt
endeavou -s.

" However, a noble, praiseworthy mt uracet
has beeii c-^ced to him, in the ng nxtrm
oi all connoisseurs of art, which not lect
to the vidantude« of Time, bat woidi w = jm-
tinue loager than marble, and the ^raae of -adt
will go on growi y like an evei^reen hmrel-tree,
down to unthinkable ages."

Later on, in hi^ book, :>andnut gi :s aft ttewM

THE TWO HOLBEINS t%s

several o/ he " i e Art Cabinets" he visited,
jod the wmk of th y ai^cr Hdbno is diat upun
which he dwells more 9t length. In Us afioottat
of Zurich, he speaks of • tdik " 'Uite psiiMed
r er by our Hoibeii, tae younger. Upon it he
repT': nts, ( - sk i in the so-called

Vob . ca' 1 ^ 'orrether sad, his

m >uti: closed \ th pa> -c, seated on an

id br< ken barrel. is ^xxinder by old

tom books, earthen aa> ^ gl ^ vessels,

it. . a i all 'anner ise uti Us, bat

e.erythu.g broke and oilt. An opjn letter
lyin e bv upon wiuch Holbein's name is
writ a, 1 pa 1 so true to nature that many
t c trie . t picK it up, thinking that it was
eai ami that mey could take k infio their hands.
He Ttst of V- e ti^ ts decorated with hunting-
pieces 'nd .uua.ge."

Corr <^ to Bas. he relates : '* By this nohie
hand' lolbei 's) " Erasmus possessed naany
"orks in his abinet and library, which he
^ueath 4. later on to the famous Amerbach,
10 added notably to his stock by the purchase
ot original drawings and his pvrifoit, coHccting
all i paintings he could, and thus himself
cit .ellent art cabinet behind him."

"Th. vvcarshii^ul Municipal Council did not

1 86 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
permit the heirs to toke it out of the city, Imt
bought it, ts is reported, for the sum of 9000
crowns, and lianded it over to the Univer«ty,
where this treasure is now on view, VtHt tie
library of world-renown, which boaats of ■
multitude of Manuscripts. The moat pmioai
part of the art treasures is made up of about
twenty original paintings by Holbein, in which
there appears more understanding and painstaking
care than could ever be duly praised. Among
them there are several excellent portraits, smI
also subject pictures, notably a prostrate, expind
Christ, foreshortened, which alone has been valued
at many thousand ducats, without the other lesKr
pictures which it surpasses, such as a 'Last
Supper,' *Lucrece,' 'Venus and Cupid,' 'Hoi-
Wn's self-iKMtnttt with his Wife,' and the por-
trait of Eraamus, a whole length ttaM&ig mi
writing with a pen, and also the portnOt of
Amerbach. There are also one hundnd and
twenty original drawings, big and little, executed
m various techniques. I can truly say that I
have seen such quantities of drawing^; by Holbein
in England at King Charles's, he being my first
patron, at the Eari of Anmdel'o and at ta>
broke's, in the dty of Boale, at hb. IfidMil
Le Bion's in Amstefdam, at Morka*!, tad ite

THE TWO HOLBEINS 187

in my own portfolio of drawings, as an accom-
plished and industrious hand could scarcely copy
within eight years' time I '*

"But the most cxquirite and very tcme of all
his art is the • Fawon of Owbt,* pwnted upon
eight compartments <rf a panel, and carefully
preserved in the Town Hall at Basle. It is a
work contoining all that our art can possibly
accomplish, as well of pious sentiment, as of neat
religious and secular figures, mighty and mean
folk, of architecture and of landscapes by day
and by mght. This picture tpatks loudly of
its author's lu»our and faun, and none either
in Itoly not in Germany can vie with it, since
eavly it carrica off the palm before all the
rest.

"Upon the organ-loft there are to be seen
painted by him • The Annunciation/ and upon
the wings *King David with hia Harp,' and
a 'Bishop with channtns, cheating Angela.'
About the big ' Da.ice of Death * in the Church
of St. John ac the French Church, ! will,
for shortness sake, merely say that I wish it
were to be seen as it originally appeared
before it was repainted by strange hands. There
is also on view there, on a comer houae, a * Duaoe
of Ptesanta,' painted «/>««• on the wet plaatar;

188 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTIS-n

and stiU tnother house, there, show, paintingi bv
Holbem on the outside. , . .**

The elder Holbein seems to hftre been km
in the year 1473, according to latest nm\h.
The earliest dated paintings by his hand are hm
the year 1493 ; in the following year his name
appears in the Augsburg records. Nothing ii
known of where and from whom he learnt his
art except what his work itself betrays, the in-
fluence of Schongauer and the NetheriuHBiji
School. Round about the year 1499, he *Mim
to have painted in Ulm. He was not tbifty,
and it has been aptly conjectured that he was too*
fond of sitting in the tavern amid the wine-
drinkers. His sons had to shift early for them-
selves, and emigrated. He is sued from the year
1515 onward, time and again, ftrdeb(% and fiaally.

by his own brother. About thii tiaw tl
left Augsburg for Alsace, and painted foe tht
Dominican Convent at Iscnheim. There he died
in the ye»r 1524. it seems. Two years later hit
son Hans the younger resolutely claims the
Other's belongings, with the help of the Buroo*
attttfofBarie.

Holbein the elder undergoes a gmt dMuigc
in his views and conception of art, which wm t
mark of the times, upon the opmiiiig of tlw !•»

THE TWO HOLBEINS 189

naissance age. The change appears to us all the
more mMnentous because we know Ttrtually
nothing about lus lift and worldly exfienenoes—
nothing about the facttw which had so strong
an influence upon this artist as to turn a truly
"Gothic," archaic painter into one who really
grasped the spirit of Renaissance Art with more
genuine feeling than the majority of his contem-
poraries. One of the most important compo>
nents of the elder Hcdbein's output as an artist
were hn numerous vlver-pmnt drawii^ Por-
tnits, verging upon caricature in many casMi
make up a round number of these, and they were
probably produced while in the tavern. No
doubt he frittered away his time and energy a
good deal upon this kind of work ; but we, nowa-
days, would not care to mtas them, on account
of their delicacy and also thnr spirited realism.
They are to be found in the print-rooms of the
Museums at Bamberg, Basle, Berlin, Copenhagen,
Weimar, &c.

The most important among the paintings in
Holbein ths elder's earlier style are {»«served at
Augsburg. The CatlMcfanal of tluit town possesses
fmir sltar>^eces, once upoa a tiim the wmgs
: carved altar in the Abbey of Weingarten
imabia. They represent *' The Secrifiee of

I90 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Joachim," " The Birth of the Virgin," her " Pre-
sentitioii in the Temple," and the " Presentation
of the Chritt'Child in the Temple." In tlK
Museum at Augsburg are kept the three pint,
ings by the elder Holbein which he did for the
Convent of St. Catherine, and which belor^ to
the set of six upon which Burgkmair was likewise
engaged, as we have learned above. Holbein's
earliest ammg these pictures dciricts (besides
several ucrtd scenes) the ** Stnta Maria Maggioit
Banlica " at Rome^ and was bespol»n in the year
1499. The most important one is that mth fkt
" Basilica of St. Paolo fuori le mura." It coo-
tains, in the scene showing St. Paul preaching,
that delicious figure of a young, well-dressed
woman, seated amid the congregation and turning
her back to ut, which is meant to represent Pkul'i
disciple, St. Thekla. Only a very great aitiit
could compass such a degree of cham h ^
slight figure, as has been done here. It is one
of the memorable instances in the story ok art
where a master has accomplished a portrait mth-
out showing us the face— that is, given us die
counterfeit of a pcnoB which expresses a distinct
diaracter and such intimate truts that wMw
could recognise her at once, though har <a«a l«i
never bean remled to us. The nme pdadif

THE TWO HOLBEINS 191

oficrs us, in the scene of the baptism of Paul,
the portraits of Holbein himself with his two
children, Hans the younger and Affibrottus. The
father, with Img hur and hetvy, full beard,
stands behind the two boys, resting hu hand on
the head of the smaller one, Hans.

No doubt the majority, if not all, of the other
characters on these pictures are portraits of friends
and patrons of Holbein; unfortunately, there
was no contemporary hbtmian to tell ut whom
they re{H'eient.

At Frankfort -on -the -Main are preserved,
though not intact and in their original order, the
centre-piece, a " Last Supper," and fifteen panels
horn the wings of a large altar-piece, painted in
the year 1501 for the church of the Dominican
numks at this place. like sinukr work of
the early Colognew Muttn, the altar wu or%i-
nally notht^ more diea t punted Paanon-play,
a work wludi wottld recall to the beholders'
memory the rep-esentations as they had wit-
nessed them before and in the church on
particular holidays.

About a picture oi Holbnn'a punfeed in die
next year (1502) we read in en old diroatde ai
the Abbey of Kuthcim: "Since, indeed, this
Abbot George had a perticttlir hncj f-«r Muldiag

i9» STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
and decorating this house of God, he ordered a
predous altu^piece to be made in the year 1502,
upon which the tkret htst mastm of Augsbuig
were engaged, the best which ftt ditt tune in^
to be found far and wide— namely, the mmBtt
joiner Adolf Kastner, the sculptor Master Gre-
gory, and the painter Hans Holbeui. This alttr
stood for much money." The interior paneb
coBtwn scenes from the life of Mary and the
chUdhood of Jesus, the outside panels such from
the Pasuon. The sixteen panels an now ti&%
seen at the Munich Gallery.

All these paintings are still " Gothic " in spirit,
and many of them still have the gold backgrooad.
Two wings of an altar, with figures of saints, now
at IVague, and two at Augsburg— showing the
" Martyrdom of St. atherine," the Fish-miitck
of St. Ulric," the " Cruci&rion of St. Peter," sad
" St. Anne, the Virgin, and the Cluist-cliilil^
discover a change in the style of ornamentufai
as well as in the painter-qualities of the work.
They may be looked upon as tentative steps in
the direction of Holbein's later style. We possess
orfy one specimen of this ktter, and it is so fiu-
above everything else the elder Holbein hat kft
us, and so wonderful in itself, that ftr a kif
time this work, the St. Sebastian altar-piace im

THE TWO HOLBEINS 193

u the Munich Gallery, was tttributed to the

younger Holbein.

The central piece, with the martyrdom, is
flanked by two wings showing full standing figures
of "St. Barbua" and "St. Elizabeth," the land-
scape background being continuous over all three
pinels. The outnde of the shutters dis{day an
"Annunciation." German art can provide no
nude figure prior to this painting which can
equal the " St. Sebastian " in draughtsmanship and
grace. The men and soldiers surrounding him
are engaged in the scene, and do not simply stand
around. Nor, on the odier hand, does any one
of them show the naggerated, punfiilly accm-
tnated movements or gesticulations into which
the earlier artists plunged, no doubt from a
feeling of misgiving that they were not quite
attaining their goal, and so shooting beyond it.
Holbein allowed his political convictions a voice
in the |»cture. Augsburg was at that tiiM an
imperial city, always at loggerheads with the
Bavarian Government. Holbein therefore dresses
one of the odious soldiers who torture the saint
in the Bavarian colours, blue and white striped,
to give vent to his spite.

There is, again, no one figure within the entire
nnge of Gtfman painting, dowti to thu year 1515,

I-

194 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
that can compare with the " St. Elizabeth." In
fact, in order to find its equal, we should have to
crow the Alp.. The beauty of form which we
encounter here may indeed be caUed Italian.

This most perfect creation of the elder HcAdn
is also the latest one of his which we jiniw
We know that he painted for the convent tt
Isenheim, as has already been stated; but, if the
work he did there still exists, it ceruinly hu not
been identified as yet.

The younger Hans Holbein was bom at Augs-
burg in the year 1497. He was certainly a pupil
of his father there. We do not come acro» kii
name in Augsburg documents, howm, and iad
him in 1 5 15 at Basle. This city was entering .
period of prosperity just then, and here Htns
the younger and his brother found plenty to do
for the publishers, designing title-pages sad
colophons and iUustrations. a ktad of ««k
which was extremely sought after at Augsbutg.
The table which Sandrart mentions b an «Mly
work, executed by the year 15 15 at the latest,
as were also a set of important pen-drawings ilha-
tratmg Erasmus' "Praise of Folly," executed on
the broad margins of a copy of the 15 14 editioD
(now in the Museum at Btmk).
The followittg year Holbein painted kit Iw

4

THE TWO HOLBEINS 195

important p<ntnits (also in the Btsle Museum)
of Burgomaster Mejrer and his wife. Like all

his early portraits these display, as contrasted
with the work done in England, a much more
luminous and deeper coloration. The plain
backgrounds of deep blue, or a vivid dark
green, are especially noteworthy.

In 1517 Holbein wu at Luzerne, where he had
to pay a fine for having engag«i in a brawl,
and where he deccnted the walls of the Herten-
stein house, within and without, with paintings.
The house was demolished in 1824; Holbein's
designs, only, have come down to us, and this
applies to all his external mural decorations, of
which he did a good many in Swiss towns. If
we may believe a docunmit sent to ftolbda by
the Council of Basle, in 1538, our loss has not
been excessive. In it they say " that his art and
time are worth more than that they should be
wasted upon old walls md houses." In fact,
though containing some figure - painting, this
sort of mural decoration was upon the whole
nearer allied to the ordinary house dcxwator's
craft than to the artist's.

Upon the 25th of September 15 19 Holbein
joined the guild at Basle, where he settled for
the next seven years. The portrait of BonifaciuS

196 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTBR
An.; «ch at the B«de Museum, one of hk
bcs-. works, date, from tlie begir,„ing of thi,
penod. For the Town Hdl he punted • mm
of subjects from ancient history, now lort. 0*,
of his principal occupations was the deaigniatrf
•toined-glas. windows, which were greedy w^i,
throughout Switzerland. 7»^^
A " Lut Supper," with figures about half life,
size, shows plainly the influence of Bcnimfiao
Luini, and in a more remote dcgne «f
Uonardo da Vinci. It and the eWit andi
of the "Passion." described by Sandrart. l^Z
to the treasures of the Museum at Basle.
Another import«»t work of these earlier mrs
» the «M«lon«." .t Solothum. paintJT
»5M. MewiwhUe his work for the puhfishm
progressed as before. .„d it brought hia i.
touch with the Reformation. The woodcM^
"The Sale of Indulgences" and "Christ the
Lamp of Truth." are satires in spirit. He de-
«gned the title-page for the ,522 edition of
Lathers New TestMient But, upon the whok.
his woodcuts aiustmte stories from the (Nd
Testament in preference to the Nor. His
famous series of ninety-one Bible designs amt
have been begun about this time, though diey
were not published as a set before 1538. The

THE TWO HOLBEINS ,97
«mc exactly applies to the other famous set,
"The Dance of Death," consisting of originally
forty, and in itt latest form (156a) fifty-eight
•oodcut desigiis. Some of the alplubett with
studies, or perh s even reminiacencet, of the
"Dance of Death " appear in books of the time,
and we possess a copy of the entire set, dated
1527. None of his paintings have done more
to spread Holbein's fame than these two wonder-
ful w of Uttk and white pictures.

In a book bjr fiestas Rhensnus, printed in
1526, there occurs the passsge: "Among the
Germans the most famous masters of the day
are-Albrecht D^' . r in Nur^-n^berg. Hans fial-
dung in Strassburg. Luc* Cranach in Saxony,
ind Hans Holbein in v. -. '-.nd, wl.o was
bora indeed at Augsbi ^gr h... has been a
atizen of fissle for . long ,,hUt already, and
who pamted our 'Erssmus iwice kst year
most successfully and very finely, both of which
portraits were sent later on to England." These
were Holbein's first portraits of Er^ -mus, one of
which was sent by the humanist o Archbishop
Warham of Canterbury. Various other artists
haw done portraits of Erumus. but he lives
'n -ur mind s eye ss Holbeia-Md Hoibem
only— painted him.

198 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
Aboat this time was painted HollMin's tktf
the "Madonna" of the BurgonU
Meyer. The beamy of this painting Ihcd its
lustre upon an excellent early copy, which h
many years was taken for the original, m
copy, in the Dresden Gallery, was ettM
so highly that it was treated as 'heO^
alpme counter-piece to RaffaelJo Santi's "SiitiBe
Madonna." Even to^iay. though it has bea,
rccogmsed „ a copy, and does not, like d«
Siatine Madonna," have a room to itself, it is
mounted on . mock ,lt. • wmewhat like'
The beautiful origin..! was "resii«»y«ri"
about 1870 at Darmstadt, where it still i,.

The years 1525-6 were fi'' i with thepea.ati'
wan, the pestilence, : nd the famine in Switzer-
hind and South Germany. It is no wonder th«
Holbein decided to seek hi. fortune clsewhat
and turned to England, whithw Enwau. M
recommended him in a letter to Sir Thom
More. Wh . Holbein finally went he carried
a letter from Erasmus to Peter A.gid;as. in
Antwerp, with him. In it we read- "The
bearer is he who has portrayed me. By thii
recommendation I don't want to put you to
much trouble, though he i. an execUwt artitt.
" he wants to mit Quentin (Matwj.), Md pi

MBVKII MADONNA ""^

THE TWO HOLBEINS 199

haven't time to take htm there, let one of your
semnts »how him the way to the house. The
arts ure freezing hereabouts, and he » on his way

to England to scrape together a few angels. You
may give him such letters as you like."

Sandrart's account of Holbein's first visit
to England requires scarcely any modification.
Holbein's "Portrait of More," dated 1527, was
probably the first work he finished in England.
It passed mto the Huth colkctioB. Aaocher
important portrait of the early English period
is that of Thomas Godsalve and his son John "
(1528), now in the Dresden Gallery, and a
third, that of " Sir Bryan Tuke," in the Munich
gallery. Holbein had to meet -nany rivals when
he reached England, who w«re weU established
in royal and public favour. But he diatanotd
them all, and so completely that their names
even are all but forgotten. For a time, naturally,
all early portraits in England were ascribed to
the foreigner who had gained such universal
applause. It is only within recent years that
students have learned to discriminate better;
and though numerous works have not yet been
properly ascribed to their authors-^or, as I said,
they have been forgotten— yet they are no longer
fathered upon Holbein.

20O STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTE

Holbein remained only about t-vo yean b
London, and returned in 1528 to Basle. Oa
the 29th of August of this year he bought ,
house there. Shortly after, the iconoclasts did
their vilhunou. work at Bade, and Holbdn
found the place scarcely in a better conditioa
to forward artistic interests than when he left
tt. He painted portraits of his family, and nor
ones of Erasmus (1530, at Parma; another, in a
round, at Basle). I„ 1530 he also finished hi,
work upon the pictorial decoration of the Town
H«I1. But there was no chance of making
his way, so he returned to London early ia
1532- The Council at Basle thought bettir
of It when it was too late, and asked him to
come back, offering him an annuity of "tWrtr
pieces." ^

Sir Thomas More had in the meanwhile rerired
from office, and Holbein's other patron. Arch-
bishop Warham, was dead. But the GermiB
merchants in London gave him a number of
orders for portraits. The "Geoi^ Gysie,"aMr
at the Berlin Museum, is a sample of the
work of this period, and further "Robert
Cheseman." with the hawk (at the Hague),
and the splendid large group in the Nation.1
Gallery at London.

THE TWO HOLBEINS 201

The German merchants of the Steele G>urt
had splendid decorations put up for the occancm
of Henry VIII.'s marriage with Anne Boleyn,

on the 31st of May 1533, and Holbein was their
author. They also bespoke the two pictures,
" Triumph of Riches " and " Triumph of
Poverty," which Sandrart mentions, and which
have not been preserved. When the house of
the German merchants broke up, these fnctures
were presented to the Prince of Wales, came
into the possession of Charles I. later on, and
still later into that of the Earl of Arundel.

Holbein also continued his woodcut work while
in England, one of his principal designs being
the title-page for the Coverdale Bibh ; another,
somewhat later, the piece for - HaU't Chronicle,-
showing Henry VIII. among his CoondUor*. He
also painted miniatures.

Holbein does not appear to have entered the
King's service before Sir Thomas More and Anne
Boleyn were both beheaded. Sandrart's story of
Mere's introduction of Holbein to Henry VIII.
« apocryphal, as wUl have already appeared.
The first important commiiaion he got was for
a large portrait group of Henry VIII., Henry
VII. and Elizabeth, his Queen, and Queen Jane
Seymour, for the palace in Whitehall, which was

202 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
contumed ia the fire 1698. In 1668 R. van
Leemputten made a reduced copy of it. Setting
aside drawings and miniatures, he does not ttem
to have painted Henry VIII. again.

The number of fine portraits in this, his later
style, is large. The " Jane Seymour " at Vienna,
«nd the "Morctte" at Dresden, besides othcn
at Windsor and in English private collections,
arc the best known. The large set of portnit
drawings in coloured chalks, at Windsor, were
presumably most of them done during this
period. Ever since they became known by
the fairly good Bartolozzi reproductions, they
have been admired as among the finest of
Holbein's achievements. His numerous designs
for the art-worker— designs for daggers, cups,
clocks, goblets, &c. &c., are scarcely less ad-
mirable. There are sketch-books full of these
at Basle and London, and detached sheets else-
where. In them Holbein betrays a ma.ncry
over the pure forms of Renaissance .decorations
which excels even that of Aldcgrever or the
Behams.

In 1538, when Henry VIII,, or rather hii

Councillors, were looking about for a new bride,
Jane Seymour having died in October of the
previous year, Holbein was sent to Brussels to

.sio:';ks ok ckkman aktj

] -oempucteri nvid- a reduce.: "r-fn- of it."
■i-^iu ■ drawing:, ; n.i miniatures, he Uv;.. ,, .
to havL r.iinte i i Iei>ry VIII. again.

l>o ,..nu^r , fiMe portraits in this,
•■•v'^, is larcc • h ' ja.^^ Seymour " at ^
■ ■ - L>r-sdcn, besiJ..

■ ' '"-ic large Si.- ..i
^'^aik., at Whu,s,..
•'■-m done dt-
' ''^ "--^ •'^'■y Lxicame k.r. ■

'^t^ tJinv g.,<Ki Jl.rtoio'zi repnAiuct' ,•
^uve a-l-nir..; as ini-mg th. r

th. art-work;.- -j,s,j.n^ .i„.

-n.rahle. Th> rc are sketch-be vk. fu!
a- Basic in ' I on.inn, and dm hel »•

"^'^ ■ •■ ^-uu ..f AMeg.-v

' 4ms.

when i\':\-r\ Vi!I.
' ■'• " -re looking ab i. f .

U ^ S- -1 '-...ving died in Oct..:v
i'r- loi.- s-.', Hotbein was sent r, i.^

i

THE TWO HOLBEINS 203

portray Christina, the wiJow of Duke Sforzi
of Milan. Within three hours he finished a
drawing that excited universal admiration, and
then pamted t portnit which b now in the
National Gallery. It it one of the best he ever
executed. It is the portrait which Sandrart calls
' Henry VIII.'s favourite, the Princess of Lor-
raine." His comment upon the lady's unwilling-
ness to become Queen of England is incorrect ;
but owing to Emperor Charles V.'s decision,
nothing came of the proposal, though Holbein's
p(»trait was so satisfactory.

From the royal accounts it appears that
Holbein was sent to the Franche Comt^ in
December 1538. And just before then he paid
a short visit to Basle. In a letter which R.
Gwalther wrote upon the 12th of September to
A. Bullinger, he says : *' A shmt time since Hmm
Holbdn came here from En^and. You can
scarcely believe how highly he praised the
condition of tfhin existing over there. He will
return thither in a few weeks." IscHn, again,
writes about him upon this occasion : " When he
visited Basle from England for a short time, he
wu clothed m satin and nlks— he who formerly
had to buy his wine at the tap.** Later on he
«ys : ** He died in England. Hit intention was.

MKMeorr mouffioN mr cnart

(ANSI ofid ISO TEST CHART No. 2)

A

/PPUEU IM^GEJnc

1653 East Main St'««t
^ Rochest*', N«« York U609
(716) - 0300 - Phon«

204 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS
if God had granted him longer life, to have re-
turned and done many paintings over again and
better, at his own expense, notably those in the
Town Hall. The Dance House" (a building
upon which Holbein had painted exterior deco.
rations), "he said, wasn't half bad." This di»>
covers a very rare and admirable trait in Holbein's
character. But the citizens of Basle appreciated
him, too, now that he was at the height of his
fame, and f6ted him.

They set up a contract with him, granting him
an annuity of fifty florins. He was allowed two
years' time to wind up his Uhin in England and
take his leave from there. In the meantime his
wife at Basle was to receive forty florins a year.
He was allowed to accept orders from fordga
potentates, and to travel occasionally abroad widi
his works to dispose of them elsewhere. But he
had to promise to return, and the pension died
witu him.

Holbein returned to London via Paris. In the
New Year of 1539 he presented the King with
ao efligy of Prince Edward, and received a gold
goblet as counter-gift. In July of this yeer hi
was sent, at great cost, with Richard Bearde to
Germany, where he had to portny Anne of Ckm,

THE TWO HOLBEINS 20$

and he took her • miniature of Henry VIII.
The portrait does not show lovely features ; but
the King did not heed it much, as it seems,
and trusted to verbal reports. He is known to
have repented of this later on. The portrait
is now in the Louvre at Paris.

Holbein continued in Henry VIII.'s favour,
and so he did not return to Basle at the app(»nted
time. He punted the Duke of Norfolk (now
at Windsor) after Cromwell's fall, and the new
Queen, Catherine Howard. All the many and
serious vicissitudes of English politics, and the
changes in the Royal Household, scarcely affected
him. He seems to have had more leisure,
however, and among his latest works are some
nortraits of persons evidently not connected
with the Court, and a self - prntnut, dated
1542.

In the following year the ph^ue raged

furiously in London. Holbein evidently was
carried off. The very haste expressed in his
will speaks for the conjecture. In the last wiU
he orders all his things to be sold, including his
horse, and his debts to be paid. He names the
debtors. He leaves a small annuity to two
illegitimate children until they should come of

ao6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

age. No mention is made of his wife and her
four children, nor of his property in Basle.
Later inventories show, however, that the balance
of his personal belongings in England found their
w»y to Basle.

CHAPTER VIII

ADAM ELSHEIMER

"One of the most famous and most commended
masters of the noble art of painting was Adam
Elsheimer, commonly called Adam of Frankfort,
the son of a tailor, bom next to the red Bath-
house at Fnmkfort, in the year 1574. In co»>
sequence of Kit intoite indtnttimi coiranU the
art of punting, he took to drawing, and be-
came, later on, the pupil of Philipp Uflfenbach.
Since his noble understanding aimed at greatest
perfection only, he soon travelled throughout
Germany in order to reach Rome in the end,
which goal he, true enough, acluered. And
here he always renuuned ^ bf nde wkh
the most fiunout ami mote virtuooa, of iHiom
there were at this time several, such as Pieter
Lastman, Jan Pimias of Amsterdam, James
Ernest Thomann of Lindau, and some others,
who altogether sought to attain the highest
summit of perfection. And just as our father
Adam was the firtt of all men, thus tl^ om

2o8 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

was the first Adam to rise in the art of painting
small (nctures, landscapes, and other curiosities,
so high and to such a likeness to nature, that he
has become the pr«lecess(Mr and father whose
manner all other painters of all parts foUowd
as being the most perfect, the most select, and
most natural.

' Among his best works a small 'Tobit' on
copper, only a span in length, increased his
feme, upon which the angel helps Tobit to
cross a shallow stream, and the little dog
jumps from stone to stone, eager to foiloir.
The bright rising sun shines them both m the
face. The landscape is so beautiful, the re-
flection of the heaven in the water so natural,
the travellers and the animals so well formed,
that so true a manner had never before been
seen; and, consequently, in all Rome nothing
was spoken of but Eltheimer't newly discoimd
art of painting. In the same mannor he paiiMd
a landscape, somewhat larger, with a Latoaa and
her children twain, whom the labouring peasants
begrudge the clear water, for which they were
transformed into frogs. Moreover, in the same
size, the wounded and naked 'Phxris,' whom
Cephalus labours to help with healing harbs.
In the distance, field-goddesses, satyrs, faws,

ADAM ELSHEIMER 209

old and young, are depicted making a fire
before the woods. No less full of art is his
painting which shows 'St. Lawrence' disrobed
before the judge, uid about to be raaMed alive
in front oi an idol. The aaint, however, casts up
his eyes to heaven with an indescribable yearning.
This original is to be seen now at Saarbnicken,
at the residential palace of the high-bom G)unt
of the realm and lord, Lord John of Nassau,
along with many other rarities. Thus he also
ptinted a small 'St Lawrence' for my cousin,
Abraham Mertens of Frankfort, standing dressed
in the coat of a Levite, the grill in one hand,
a palm in the other; but the background is a
far-distant mountain range, with valleys, water-
falls, daii ty buildings, through all of which the
evening sun glows, uncommonly natural and
well thought out, so tlttt I lack words for
sufficient prai'>e rather than subject for praise.
This new manner of painting in miniature in
oil having gained such admiration, he left off
painting large-sized oil paintings (though this
was really the aim of his earliest studies), and
remained true to the small style.

"He likewise etched several small landscapes
of field-deities, and nymphs with cymbals,
dancbg, for whom satyrs play muste, and other

2IO STORIES OF GERMAN! ARTISTS

clever curiosities of th\i> kind. He did a sun-
set from a dark forest, where one looks omi
dutiatt hills and valleys to the hotwsmi, jtiii
wondroady cdoured; and, agaii^ in «nill«H|||ii
shape, the Capitation of St. John 4||
Baptist,' ir .ich his great sagacity in denwi||
the only true manner of painting night appaff
to full advantage; which was then praised Mt
highly, that it inspired him to paint furthei^
how 'Jupiter and Mercu*^ ' fatigued fro|k^
long journey, enter the mw» peasant «)ttiigli|K
Baucb and Philemon, where, seated by hmpligHI
they themselves by the side of these poor poifli
and their poor possessions, are lighted m clewrly#
that this and the following work are as good l|
a complete instruction and manual, firoaa whil|^
the correct grasping of night effisets : qpp^ll^
Icttnt. And I remember when I «Mo|ii^
and begin to pnat the night, hoir. | Mpl^i
tUs for ^ very idea, guide, and formttl
Just as full of art as this is the large 'Ceiii
Drinking,' also a night-piece. She is standiif(
near an old woman with a candle, and ia huaif
mocked by the villunous boy. This piclMit
has rightly been granted the highest pniiisiili^
reiowtt for everything, as much for :^ziBB0^
podtion and invention, as for die dnui^MiMlii^

ADAM ELSHEIMER 211

ship, coloration, various beautifuJ lights, the
landscape, trees, risii^ and pendent fdii^e,
leaver, and herbs.

" How high this handsome intellect h-'d risen in
matters of poetry, allusion, invention, and bright
ideas, is proven his biggest work, stiU in the city
of his birth, which the honourable Mr. Du-Fay,
tradesman, showed me in 1666. Therein he
represented the • Contento ' or * Pleasure ' on a
large sheet of copper in the following manner :
In the air there flies the Contento, or Heart's
Desire, represented by two graceful figures.
Down below, on the earth, all manners of
people, high and low>bom, are Imsy inth tlut
upon which they are especially bent Some
display their faith in the gods piously near a
burning altar, where, in a dark temple, an old
priest, clad in white, is to be seen offering
incense in the presence of laurel-wreathed vestal
virgins, as well at young boys (acccMrding to
antique custom), with tncenae4M»tt ami otlur
psraphemalia for the altar upon whidi die oAr-
ing is burning, and all the devout bystanders
are wondrously illumined by it. In the fore-
ground one perceives the consecrated beasts led
to the sacrifice. Within the temple, above, the
fearful Jupiter, with his glistening thunderbolts

2ia STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

in his hand, is about to descend, showing him-
self well disposed towards the Contento on
account of the sacrifice. Without the temple
people of all Idnds of callings are engaged, each
one according to the nature of his longing, in
the attempt to attain to dignity, splendUmr,
wealth, and possessions, the philoac^hen and
others to art and wisdom; some seek that
gain by means of trading and warlike practices,
others try by sprinting, horse-racing, playing,
bowling, and other means to reach their Contento,
every one of which is represented after a special
and uttconunon manner, so that this very mm
piece is to be praised as the city's greatoi
embellishment in the way of painting.

" Upon another large piece he has represented
the 'Flight into Egypt,' with the little Christ-
child, which our Lady, riding on the ass, has
wrapped close in her cloak. Joseph leads the ass
through a small stream set about with bushes, ud
he carries a rushlight. In the distance one latt
field-herdsmen with their cattle near a bwi^
fire, which is carefully reflected in the water.
Before them is a dense forest, above which wc
see in the clear sky sUrs, especially the milky
way; and behind, and stranger yet, the clear ftill
mom rising just above the clouds on the hotitfiB.

ADAM ELSHEIMER 213

AU tins bdng perfectly reflected in the water,
in a manner which has never been d<Mie befofc,
produces a result which altogether, and in every

single portion, is quite incomparable. Moreover,
ail his works, of which there are but few, but
those painted admirably on copper, were engraved
by Magdalene de Fksse and others. But this
original Jonckiiaer Gouda" (Goudt), "of Utrecht,
a particular amateur of art, showed me my
often. And although he freqoently unuertook
to engrave it most accurately upon copper, he
never quite attained to the excellence of the
original ; as, indeed, it is not possible for copper
engraving quite to equal painting. For although
this Gouda's engravings exceUed others, ^ -t the
original paintings put the copper engrav 1 to
shame when one phces them side by sid.., and,
in fact, they are put in the dark, just as earthly
light is put in the dark : nd to ^-.ame by the
clear sun.

"In this sagacious manner Elsheimer did his
work, for hu memory and his understanding
were » weU trained, that if he had only seen
some beautiful trees (before which he wonkl
often sit or lie for half a day, indeed, for whole
days), they would have impressed themselves
upon him so clearly that he had been able to

214 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

paint them at home altogether true to rjitQR
without the help of sketches; and this am
be gleaned from this fact among others, that
after he had once impressed in this manner
the Vigna 'Madonna' at Rome upon hit
memory, he was able to reproduce it in Mi
pictures ever after most ctiriously, every tiie
exact after its kind, recognisable as to tn^
foliage, leaves, and all details, in colorstioa,
shading, and reflected lights. Which custom n
not that of everybody, for it is very difficult
indeed to further your work after this fashion
without the presence of nature, or at least
sketches, to help you. In the end the diffi-
culties of this manner overstrained him and
made him melancholy, which was by nature
his inclination anyway, and he husbanded lot
affairs badly ; besides, he married a Roman, by
whom he had many children. Theref<ve he
drifted into straitened circumstances, although
his works had been paid for dearly. Thus he
became fretful and ran into debt. And this
same Gouda mentioned above had to tarry
at Rome for years, suffering losses, on ac-
count of money that he had advanced
(Elsheimer) for work not finished, so thtt

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2', ofOHIh:? OF GERMAN Al- r-VS

paint them at home aluigether true ■:• nataie
without the iic'p of ^kcahes; ar^ li cm
pleancL. from th-s fact among o: rs that
a. rcr he hacf. once iaip.cs'c i in t r mnig
the Vigna ' Ma.Jo!i:i.i ' at Rome .pot H
memory, he was abJe to reproduc*; it in Ml
p!-r'.rfs fver after most curiously. cv--y tfil
exact iittcr its kind, recognisable as 'o trmiS^
f >'iiP:f r. . id al! Jctaiis, in rjlor^o^
• .'-Hling, and reflertrfi 'i^h's. Which ci- torn I

ii'-'f N'nt jfyhody, {'or it is Vf^ry iifil^

if' i-f^d to further your \. nk .ifi-r tl ■ fa hie
W'thoiit the presence nature, at least

sketrhc^, to help you. In the end the difll-
culties of this -Jianner overstrained h. n iid
made him melancholy, which was b\ natwc
his inclination anyway, and he husbf.iJed His
affairs badiy ; Ijcsitl -s, he married a R iuia by
wt: tV: he huj rurrv childreri. Th-.-rcfore ht
dr.fTf.i into straitened ciaumstanvt*, airhough
"* ■ ' ■ ■ paitl for dearly, 'i'aus he
''!:-.»;ne fretful ran !:-,:o Jchf. An.! thu

■■.■i.-nc •( :tla neru.i iicd a!'':'V(. ha-' :o tarry
at konic fir yvari, f-'flei-ins:. lo-.scs, uii ac-
count of m(jney that he h..(i advancoi
(I'.lsheimer) for work not fini^iied, io thit

ADAM ELSHEIMER 215

Elsheimer was put into the debtOT's nrison, where
again he did net help himself out of l.is troubles
by means of work, as -xould have been no more
than just and proper for him to do, but fretted
undl he fell fiurly ill. And though he wu
liberated, he toon thereafter was translated
from this tetaponJ world widi iminartal
praise and after-fiime for his eccelloice. I£s
widow, of whom I bought a picture, was sdll
living with several sons at Rome in 1632. For
brevity's sake I will cease from ill further praise,
and, to wind up, merely say that he not only
always undertook difficult tasks, but also carried
them through in the happiest fashion. All his
feats excelled the very plans of many other
artists. He was so well founded in perfection
and in that which is good, that when he umply
drew a contour unth pen or crayon, he disphyed
therein better understanding than others could
after patient work and trouble. Iiis works were
never dependent upon sketchy handling, or
over-elaborate ornament or loud coloration, but
above all, upon the most select draughtsman-
^ip and true colorati<m, to such an octent that
if you looked at his work in a looking-glass, and
then turned to nature, you found tiw one like

2i6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

the other, as if they had been one and the
same thing.

" And thic encomium was granted him through-
out the whole wwld, whence it happens thu all
A»hionable amateurs and travellert Arom afar, 'jt
search of the curious, very much denre aud
expect to see something rare and exceptional by
this famous hand in the Town Hall of his birth-
place, since he is commonly called Adam of
Frankfort. But although we naturally would
expect that the honourable Council of Frankfort
should own in its Town Hall, among other
rarities, very many excellent works by this most
commendable one among all its subjects (as would
be no more than proper, and as is everywhere
else the custom, for example, as regards Rafi«dk>
in Rome, as regards Michiel Angelo in Florence,
as regards Titian in Venice, Holbein in Basic,
Diirer in Nuremberg, Lucas van Leiden in Leiden),
and whereas other cities make not a little show in
their Town Halls of the work of their citiieni,
showing them to strangers and travellers u
objects of particular value, yet at Frankfort not
the slightest thing (by Elsheimer) is to be seen
at the Town Hall, nor is his name even re>
membered, in spite of the hct that there lum

ADAM ELSHEIMER 217

been plenty of means and oppottunities to attend
to this formerly as well as to-day. However, in
spite of this, the fame of this praiseworthy artist
will not die out, and it will be said of him —

" ' As long as virtue will be loved,
As long as Fine Arts will be proved,
So long the world will ever strive
To keep Elsheimer's fame alive.'"

CHAPTER IX

ANTON RAPHAEL MEN08

The great wave of art which had flooded Gei^
many at the beginning of the Renabsance had
spent its force by the middle of the nxteenth
century. After that a lull had set b, and bjr
the time a renewed uprisal was due, nttioMl aiii»>
fortunes had intervened to counteract it. The
Thirty Years War prevented the return of a pariod
of brilliancy, which would probably have come,
if we may judge by the circumstance that such
periods generally revert to nations at regolir
intervals of about a century. For nearly two
humlred and fifty years the story of German «t
remuned almost a blank. It sounds fflte t
paradox, but one might really express it thus:
The artist did not die out, but art did. When
it comes to the matter of gleaning the grot
masters of the world's history of art, even such
a painter as Elsheimer distinctly belongs to the
aftermath.

It b a strange anomaly, howcru', that tie
artists who did work within this long period (M

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 219

not fail to call forth the unbounded enthusiasm
of their contemporaries, let posterity rank them
ever so low. The less important a painter was,
it seems, the higher hb praises have been sung.
Ssndiart Imnsetf wm boded more eictimvagantly
titto he ever pruied the moet importaat emoag
all the artists about whom he wrote, and he
believed that his own painting imfroired upon
all of that of the old masters.

Much the same may be said of Mengs, who
is to-day all but forgotten. The biography by
Kanc(»u, cae of hb best fnends, is only one tjf
several, all of wMdi way be styted eulogiet nther
than tnogni^uea. They we imereatiag, if for
no other reason, for tfab ont alone, that they
show how wide contemporary criticism can occa-
sionally miss the mark. In adding to our volume
a chapter on Mengs drawn from a contem-
porary source, in accwdance with the general
plan oi the bode, it wu necesMry to warn the
reader thus much, leat he riiould be eonfiued
by the elated tone oi the pami^let fi'om which
the following extracts have been translated ^ : —

"I propose to treat of the most noteworthy

' Ptange'i annoutkms to BiaaconFs " Lift" tortbseasdiisd,

for the most part, since they not oi^ sap^eiMat bat oftn
correct the present author.

aao STORIES OF GBStMAN ARTISTS
punter of our century, a tcholar and philo.
•opher, of the GiTtliece Anton Raphael Menp,
■nd wUl commaioe at the very beginning with
his bringing up, which wts m nngvbr at^
fruits thereof were unique. When grm mm
are discussed, even the minor details of life wu
important. Thus I shall be readily pardoned for
going into nuttera more at length ; and, besides,
you may put down some of it to the score of .
long and tender friendship, which bound me to
him when both of us were still young, in Statony,
and since then for ever in Italy.

"The pestilence which all but depopulated
Copenhagen, the Danish capital, at the beginning
of this century, spared the life of Ismael Mengi
alone out of twenty-three brothers and sisten.
He had devoted htmaelf from youth up to paint-
ing, more particularly to enamel-paintii^ aad
now left his sorrowful home to try his ftvtOM
in Saxony, which was then ruled by August II.,
King of Poland, a prince famous for his good
parts, his magnanimity, and his love of the fine
arts. Ismael entered the service of the King,
who employed him principally as painter in
enamels, and to this day many incomparable worb
by his hand are to be seen in the titasury of tfct
Saxon House at Dresden. Hb chanettr mi

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS ftsi

very likely quite unique. laMgiae to younelf •
n, not encdy ugly, but very eUurk complexioned
and colourless man, (fopoaed to meltncholy, but
otherwise righteous enough, a man of few words,
though when he would talk he could do it better
than most people. He played excellently on the
flute, and always drank the very best beer thet
was ever brewed throughout the wbok knd ;
these two thinge were hi* sole delights. Fre-
quently he contemplated the King's pictures, and
whenever the Court Theatre was in season he
would go there to hear operas, which were at that
time to be seen beyond all comparison at Dresden,
day after day. Never has any one seen lum coo-
versing with htt neighbour there, nor cxhibtttng
anytokenaof aatisliKtion,nar«ppfanidtag. Sbce
he was of Danish birth, one would have taken
him for a Lutheran ; but it remaned an open
question whether indeed he was one, for he never
went to church.

"About the year 1720 he married Charlotte
Bormann of Zittou,* a Lnaattan town, and lived
with her a quiet, retired life. She presently bore
him a son, Charks Morris, and then a daughter,
Theresa Concordia. In 17%9 he went overland

> TU* is » nuMika^ lanari did not marry her mttU afktr
Antoa Raphad^ biitli, and then tegitimiied his oftprif.

aaa STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

in summer time to Aussig, a little, sorry town
in Bohemia, near the Saxon boundary. Thmt,

upon the twelfth of March, Charlotte bore faia
a second son, whom he christened Anton Raphael,
out of admiration for Correggio and "^^ello
Santi.' Some time after, the fourth and lastchiU,
Julia, was born.

** As soon as ever these four dttldieniscttgblt
to hold crayons in thdr Uttle hands, the nkr
father kept them at drawing. Charlotte died sad

left the bringing up of this budding talent to
Ismael and a maidservant. His house lay in a
remote part of the town, and it might well have
been called an academy-school for these four
little children, orer whom die nillen fiither pn>
nded as prerident and auster, with a rod in o»
hand and a pencil in die other."

The elder son soon grew tired of this jofhm
life, departed from his fatherly home, went to
Bohemia, turned Catholic, and devoted himself to

* Ismae], one of the queerest men that ever livM^ took it
into his head to beget a son who should combine the OlmMs of
Rafiaello Santi and Antonio Allegri (Correjrgio). Krom his
first jrears on, Ismael saw to it that Anton Rap h -.ei should fiiMl
his destiny. He generally kept all his affaire qu.ct in the dark,
but to a friend, Bdttcher, fin«-art dealer at Leipsic, he confided
his intentions as regarded the child, and that he was to draw like
Rafiael and use his colours like AllegrL When Bdttcher ^oke

(tf the oncertainty of a firtore so Curnmovcd, iMoad aid s ^ H«
sMi aad Hmutl*

ANTON RAPHAEL MENG5 %%3

sdenttfic tnM&t M wdl M lut ■tnttmad dfcam-
Ktnces Allowed. Hw father did not move a
finger to recover this ton ; he only distributed
his share of the flogging equally among the three
children that remained at home * These intimi-
dated children, accordingly, learned the art of
drawing from their sileat father, and reading and
writing from their gamiloaa miidaerTaiit. They
nerer left the houae except in company of Ismacl,
and then only at night to get some fresh air for a
few moments, and their most interesting walks
never took them beyond the alleys of the so-
called New Town (Neustadt) or along the sandy
banks of the Elbe. Nights with a bright moon
shining in the sky were grand treata for theae
poor children. Some masstnn that they did not
even know the name of the town in which, and
the name of the ruler under whom, they -ved.
What their religion was probably none of them
knew, for their father never honoured them so
much as to tell them, much less did Itt ever
take them to church.

In the year 1741, when Anton Ri^had waa in
lus tlurteenth year, bmael dedded to viut Rome

' It is reported that the youngest child, Julia, broke both
legs one day by jumping out of a second-story window jna
desperate attempt to escape the blows of tte lyriMiiral

i !
< 1

I

214 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

mth his entire fkmily, to broaden their ideas, u
he aaid, and to acquaint them at this place with
the work of Raffaello Santi, who had ever Ikoi
hit idol.' August III., who had by that timi
come to the throne, was as bounteous as im
father had been, and granted Mengs the neces-
sary three years' leave of absence. Thus Ismael
left Dresden with his servant and the three
children, who were quite unable to comprehend
the innovadon, and who did not know to i^
part of the world they were being led. At B«»tWt
at length, Ismael became somewhat more com-
municative, and showed them the ••Loggie"and
" Camere " of Raf&eilo, and the ceiling in the
Sistine Chapel by Michelangelo.'^ They spent
three years here, living dose by St Peter's
Qiurch. Young Anton Raphael was incesMBtly
engaged in drawing from RaAeUo, or frtMi tli
aatkine and the nude model, or studjmf ii

• Mengs was drawing an ann from a cast. Old Iimad,
watching him through a hole in the door, noticed that he band
hi* orvn ana and lo(Aed at it, in order to find things which d»
cast did not seem to show properly, " Now," exclaimed Iimsel,
" the time has come for me to take you to Rome ; you are ripe
for it."

» Ismael divided up his son's working day thus — he had
to rise early, breakfost, and go to the Vatican to draw after
Ra&ello's paintings. He spent the whtde day in th« Vat^au^
•atiag withinff but a ^ece oflucad and some fruit To igt^
accurately, he did not begin to copy Rafiaello before he had
studied Michelangelo and the antique thoroughly, thus pro-

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 225

the workshop of the famous painter, Benefiale.
The women-folk painted miniatures at home
under Ismsers direction. For the Romans it
WIS a constant source of delight to see the quiet,
modest little Germans dmng such etteUent work
at such an early time of life.

They returned in 1744, treasuring a store of
knowledge; but the old system of education
recommenced straightway. The children were
again kept indoors, like hermits. The King him-
self, and all Dresden, did not evta know that
Innadi had a family. However, love of punting
and of music presently ejected a chai^. One
day Ismael Mengs happened to go to the house
of De Silvestre, a Parisian, at that time principal
painter-in-ordinary to the King, where he beheld
not only the beautiful work of this excellent
nuster, but also one of his well-mannered
daughten, who was nnging in Italkn, wkh a

ceeding on the same path which Raf&ello hiin!>elf had trod. In
the evening Anton Raphael drew from casts and from nature,
under Sebastiano Conca, lamplight for om hour. Thaa
came supper, of which then was always good and ^enty.
Tbete followed half«a-lioar of wmk at perspective and anatomy,
ud then he west to bed. No doubt it was this excessive
application which weakened his constitution and prepared the
way for the poor state of his health in later years. Consider
also the severity of the treatment which he received at the
hands of Ismael, who cased him for the mmmiition of the
lightest firahs.

226 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

good grace. In this house, of an evening, the
best of Court society and all foreign ambassadon
were w<Mit to assemble ; it wis the exact counttt^
part of Meng's own home, one unceanng coone
of joy and pleasure. Among the guests dMe
was also one, Signor Domenico Annibali, a oout
musician, an exquisite singer, and a man of the
best and most captivating manners. On account
of his amiability he was highly esteemed every-
where ; he, in company with the famous Job
Adolph Hasse, reigned supreme over the ItaEtn
stage in Saxony. It was his voice which dose
found a way to Ismael's inaccesnble heart.
Somebody at Rome had written to him that
Ismael was the father of three children, all of
whom were perfect prodigies in painting. He
communicated the fact to a good friend of his,
Father Guerini, a Jesuit of the Ducal Hmk
of Bulciardo, and one of Augiutus IIL*t ia-
timates.

One day Annibali sang a touching ur at
Silvestre's house, which gained general approba-
tion. Ismael was present at the time. Ismsel'j
heart was mightily touched, and for the fint
time he opened hb mouth and begged, in Im
way, the unger for a repetiti(m of tin air.
** Gladly;* replied the cunning AnnihUi, '* if IP

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 227

will allow me, by way of return favour, to visit you
at your house to-morrow, and become acquainted
with your estimable family." AU of the company
laughed ; Ismael was very much distmsed, but,
rubbing his f<Mehead, said : "Sing well to-night,
and then I will expect you to-mmrow. But you
must come alone ; I do not want any of this
laced and gilt canaille." There you have a
little sample of Ismael's phraseology ! Annibali
sang; Ismael was moved even unto tears, and
then ran off, tottering, without taking leave of
anybody. From tlus moment on, Ismael, rough
as he was, could no longer resist Annibali, who,
like Orpheus, began henceforth to lead this
Danish Rhadamanthus according to his will.
On the following morning he went to Mengs'
house.

After a free exchange of compliments he was
diown into a room, wherun he percdved a few
iplit-bottom chairs and a XnkAit upon which there
were, tea, a pipe, a beer-mug, a large ope<. German
Bible, a cat-o' -nine-tails, and some leather straps
of peculiar invention. In the second chamber
he saw two girls, plainly dressed, sitting at a tablw
and painting miniatures. At another table there
wu seated a youth oi about sixteen years, with
long hair falling down upon htt^ihouiden, hoMf

218 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

at work upon some sort of painting or other.
None of these academicians, wrapt up in their
work, dared to ruse their eyes in order to see
who, contrary to custom, had stepped into the
room to break in upon their nevernrnding wljtwfg
The stranger saluted, but no one of them dand
to return the greeting before the father's per-
mission had been given. Annibali saw various
fine pastel paintings hanging upon the walls,
among them two portnuts from the life, one of
which represented Ismael, the othet the yoa^
who was at work now in the room. He wh
informed by the father that they w<;re the wwk
of the young lad in the room. Quite bende
himself with astonishment, he inquired of the
youth only half in earnest, whether he would
have ventured to portray him (Annibali) m die
suae manner. The young man stared htm in
the fmce, sad reptied: "Why not, ifmjMm
had commanded me to do it ? ** Indeed, I
should like it very much," Ismael put in; "for,
ever since yesternight, I can refuse Signor Anm-
bali nothing." " And when could you do it?"
"That depends upon my father." "Do yea
ynut it done right away?" Ismael asked. "I
should Uke thtt, above aU things," AanUi
rejoitted. Thereupon the Either fetched ■ 4i«t

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 229

of blue paper, gave it to Anton Raphael, and left
them, locking the door behind him. The young
man commenced to paint at once ; and during the
whole time the daughters did not utter a sound,
riveting their eyes uninterruptedly upon dieir
work. After about an hour's time, Ismad
peeped in at the door and asked whether he
might come in. " Yes," was the son's answer ;
for you must know, that the father never wanted
to see him at work — he only looked at the work
when it was finished. He entered, looked at iht
painting, and ^owed it to Anmbali, who did not
know what most to admire, its beauty, tihe gwat
likeness, or the speed with which it had been
done.

Immediately Ismacl came back with a Bible
and wanted Anmbali to swear that he would
never reveal by whom the portrait had been
painted. But he said he would rather die than
not say anything to Father Gueri^ about it.
Therefore he tried to get around the oath as best
he could, and managed to silence Ismael in the
end, who took away his Bible, somewhat con-
fused. Next day the picture was finished with
like rapidity, and then glazed and framed.

Father Guerini informed the King, much to
his surprise, that Anmbali had diaeovarcd a

230 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

family in Mengs' house, whom nobody had .ver
heard of, and he was full of wonder when he
wu asBured that the son, in 8|»te of his bong
so youi^, was perhaps as good an artist as die
father himself. Whoever has had the honour
to see kings at close quarters will know that
they are often condescending, inquisitive, and
impatient. The King, accordingly, commanded
the portrait to be brought at once in his pesena,
wluch the youth had pamted of his discoverer
or liberator, I am at a loss which best to call hnn
A kckey rushed at <Mice to Nbngs* house, de*
manding the portrait in Annibali's name. Ismael
lost his temper, rebuffed the lackey, called him
names and accused him of lying, and they were
just on the point of coming to blows, when the
lackey, pronouncing the name of his Majesty,
wrested the picture from Ismael, and departed with
it. Ismael, half-dazed, lodced ufttr lum tboi^
the window, and sent a thousand imprecations
after him. A few moments later Anmbali, quite
unconscious of the whole transaction, sauntered
in. One may well imagine what sort of words
the two had together. The poor innocent chil-
dren cried and trembled when they heaid the
row that was going on.

The pcture came into the palace, and it mt

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 231

not otherwise than if Annibali himself had come,
the likeness was so great. The King recognised
its value at once and had it placed in his cabinet,
where it remained thereafter. He ordered his
Prime Minister to bid Annibali present this
new artist at Court, who, in the dawn of his
days, had attained to a degree of perfection
which few barely reach in their zenith. He
wanted to see the whole family upon thb
occasion. It was necessary to redothe them
widi the greatest posnble speed, for they had
no garments but those they wore in the house.
And this was the first time the two daughters
ever had their hair dressed d la mode^ and were
besprinkled with scented powder.

The King, a great connoisseur «f paintii)g,
ttcdved them very graciously, assttimi^ the air
of a distingtushed artist rather than that of a
soverogn. He conversed with them about art,
and learned that the daughters painted minia-
tures. He dismissed them with the command
that Anton Raphael was to return upon the
following day and bring his box of paints along,
which he wanted to see, as being quite enamoured
of his style of colontion. The youth appeared
with his father at the appointed hoar. But
what was his cmiAwon, when he wm told to

232 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

begin upon the King's portrait in pastels right
off-hand. "If you could paut Annibftli thui,
without any warning, you will be able to do

me just as well," Augustus said.

The youth, bowing profoundly, and laying
aside all bewilderment, began upon the King's
portrait en face. Every one knows how difficult
this pose is, especially in the case of a face with
regular features, and Augustus III. was bcywjd
a doubt one of the most handsome mai in all
Europe. Anton Raphael had not been tt mrt
quite two hours, when the Queen, the Crown
Prince and Princess, Prime Minister Count
BrQhl, and Father Guerini entered, all of whom
were full of amazement. After the third sitting
the portrait had reached that state of perfection
for which we are wont to admire it to this day;
it is perhaps the moat beautiful among all thi
pastel paintings by our artist. He recdved
once a gift of one hundred pistoles and letters
patent for an annual pension of 600 dollars.
The King demanded to be ohown some of the
miniatures by the sisters, and they, too, were
granted 300 dollars annually apiece, by way of
encouragement and to make them proud of being
the sisters of this budding Saxon Apellet. Our
Antun Raphael could not beUeve that hk indosfry

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS a33

(which lightened lus work for him), coold have
ever earned to much. At the Court, the newly
ivcorend fiumly were the tole talk of the day.
ConnoiMeurt declared Menga' works to be beauti-
ful because, indeed, they were so. But flatterers
discussed them with rapture, because they pleased
the King.

His Majesty had been informed that Ismael
possessed other pastel pictures by hb son at
home. He commanded them to be fetched,
paid handsomely for them, and had them placed
in his cabinet, where the pictures by Rosalba
Carriera hung. Among them is his own portrait,
as he looked when the unsparing rod of his
father hung over him, with long hair to his
shoulders and a melancholy nuen.

Anton Raphael was right weU pleased with
so good a begpnning, and he now, at the
command of the King, frequented with his
father the Royal Picture Gallery, the finest
treasure-house in all Europe, as is well known.
He looked upon the paintings from the point
of view of the philosopher and the artist at
once, and the great magnificent works elicited
his admiration. Hundreds of times he repeated
to me, with great satisfurtion, that after he had
contemplated Titian, the Carracci, Guido Reni,

234 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

and man) others, he finally had stepped up to
Correggio, had kissed him and had whispered
in hb ear, as it were, " You alone pleue nael"
At thftt time the beautiful Rafiiwllo had not
yet arriyed from ^uenza.

Disingenuous courtiers praised Mengs to the
King in a manner which implied that though
he was the best of pastel painters, yet this
phase of art demanded little of draughtsman-
ship, and that Mengs was in nowise equal to
the greater exigencies of oil painting. Anton
Raphael felt the tdng in th«r fiilae pnuie, and,
at the same time, the strongest desire of pro*
gressing in his own art. He therefore begged
Annibali, who had in the meantime assumed
the rdle of a protector over him, to obtain of
the King through Father Guerini the permit to
travel to Rome, which he muntained to be the
cmly country where one could learn how to
paint. This permisuon was obtained withoirt
any difficulty, and so our artist left for Italy
in the year 1746 with his father, the maid-
servant, and his sisters. They first went to
Parma, to pay a visit, as it were, to Correggio
at his own home, then to Venice to honour
Titian. After Ferrara and Bologna he arrived
enthused rather than encoun^jed at Rome, tUs

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 235

main foster-mother of the fine arts, with th^
firm intention of leaving it either not at all
or as a painter.

Correggto vad Titian in hit heart, he locked
himself up in the Vatican, where RaSaello had
bieathed his divine soul upon the walls. He
began to study him and to paint in his style
rather than to copy him. His first attempt in
oil was a half-length of a •* Magdalen " and the
portrait of his father; both in his old manner.
It occurred to him to paint a "Holy Family'*
in Raffiwllo*s style and send it to the King, for
the benefit of thoee lund friends who maintained
that he could never proceed beyond pastel paint-
ing. But he lacked a fitting model for the
head of the M' ' Jnna. The home of the
Lirias, Poppacas, Julias, and Faustinas provides
to this day beauties enough. But every style
of beauty does not suit a Madonna, and he
wanted very much to wo^ from nature. One
day he met on the street a very handsome,
young and modest, but poor girl. He halted
and exclaimed : " This is the Madonna I am
looking for ! " Mengs' rare modesty really
required no guardian ; yet the young girl never
sat for him except in the i»«sence of wmt
sensible and imrtuo\u relative. Anton Raphael

%36 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

and she fell in love with one another, and
began to consider marriage, to which Ismael,
who had in the mean time become somewhat
more hunume, gave his consent. Not so the
girl's father, who would not think <^ bestoiniig
his daughter uptm a Protestant. It was lim
that Anton Raphael came to embrace the
Catholic faith. His sisters, who sanctioned and
revered blindly everything .hat their In-other
did and thought, followed him in this step.
But the very thought of communicating their
intention to their ftther made them tremble.
Gxitrarjr to expectation, however, he rused no
objection, as long as they continued, he aud,
to paint well and industriously. On the i6th
of July 1 749, they joined the Catholic Church,
and a few weeks later Anton Raphael was
joined in wedlock to Margaret Guazzi, fca:
that was the name the beautiful and modest
girl. This was the first time that unrestrsiaed
and hearty merriment ever reigned in hamA
Mengs' house.

After an absence of somewhat over three
years, Ismael returned to Dresden with his
entire family. Annibali, who had been present
at our punter's wedding, had preceded them m
1749, and had informed the King of the chaages

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 137

that had occurred in the Mengi cataUishmeiit.
bmael, too, had toned Catholic; he aaid, in
t well-condttioiied haulj then ahonld be no

difference of opinions, and he wanted no schism
in his. Only the maidservant renuuned stuUMra
and true to her old faith.

When the King, to whom Anton Raphael
had presented his "Holy Family," saw what
great progress our painter had achieved, he
comn^^oncd him to punt lut aiK* the Queen's
portrait in oils, two fiill-lengths m rcg^l attire.
This circumstance caused Silvestre, who had just
finished a similar pair, to retire to France.

About this time the fine Catholic church,
planned by Gactano Chiaveri, was nearing com-
pletion, when somehow or other the report was
sfxead that the roof and ceilif^ were inulanger
of caving in. The architect staked his head
that the rumour was all false, but his enemies
barred him the way to the ear of the King.
Anton Raphael pitied the poor architect, now
almost quite deserted. He ventured with his
father scvcn.1 times into the huge pile, and
examining it closely, aocm Recovered how super-
fluous every Idnd ci hat irw, and how maUgnant
those who had spread the report were. While
he was painting the King he had the courage

238 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

to lead up to the subject and speak his opinion
openly. The King then gave strict orders for
a thorough investigation to be made, with the
result that it appeared there wis no dufH^
The deserving architect fell upon the
young artist's neck, and publicly called Mmlil
liberator, his father! Building was resomodf
and the walls which a short while ago ptofk
hesitated to lean up against, now swarmed with
workmen, who in a few months' time finished
this royal structure. 1
The King was eager to consecrate lus tktoM
But there were still three altar-pieces waatinfi
The painting of them was entrusted to Mengi.
This, however, was more properly the w«k of
as many years as Mengs was granted weelu.
To comply with the Queen's request, who, in
her turn, wanted to humour the King, Mcagt
had to finish the two ude altars, a ** Coneepte
of the Virgin" and "St. Joseph Asleep," withip
a couple <^ weeks. The nuun altar was occnplli
by a provisory painting in water-colours until
Mengs should have completed his oil-painting.
The church dedicated to the Holy Trinity was
consecrated in the year 1752 by Monsignore
Alberico Archinto. Chiaveri had provided BMMt
ingeniously and excellently fur all Utt auuif

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 239

special uses that this church was put to, and
its sole deficienqr » that the i»re was not
decorated by a painting of Mengs. This, the
intention c' the King, was frustrated by the
misfortunes which at that time befell Germany.
But Anton Raphael, in spite of his being only
twenty-three years old, and having no cabal or
mistress to furthe his interests at Court, was
appointed first paintor-in-ardinary to the lUng,
and his pension raised to ioe» dollars a year.

It seemed as if he was to be most envied,
and yet fate had prepared peculiar sufferings
for Wm. hmael had assumed the rtle of
general treasurer, and collected the income of
the whole family, which amounted to about
2200 dollars now. But he was very close
when it came to adnumstering to the wants
of lij children, »nd espedsily to his daughter-
in-law, who was accustomed to the comfortable
manner of living at Rome. The reasonings of
Anton Raphael were of no avail, and home life
was extremely dissatisfactory, especially as the
old maidservant had likewise grown overbearing.
Ismael made great demands upcrn his duldrsn
in return for the educatkm they had recdved,
and in order to keep up peace they allowed
him to retun all the money that they recetved

240 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

in payment for work executed, and claimed
only the amount of their pensions for them*
selrei. All these and further domesdc dif>
ferences bore down heavily upon Anton Raphad
at this time when he was pundng the pert^
of the Royal Family.

An heir was born to the Royal House in
1 7 JO, and, when he was a few months old,
Mengs painted a pastel of the little tnAnt <»
a red carmine plush cushicm. He punted dtt
child in its shirt, so that ndther the fiwe, the
head-dress, nor the clothes would betray whether
it was a prince or a princess. The royal father
was mightily pleased with the work, and had
it hung near to his lounge, where he spent
most of his time, and kissed it every time it
was brought into the room.

Meanwhile our grateful artist had oaauuBnoid
a three-quarter length of Annibali in lien of
the one the King had retained. It was a life-
size portrait in oils; but Mengs was so rushed
for work that he could devote only occasional
moments to it. He also began a portrait of
Sk Hanbury Williams,^ an English gentlemn

• Mengs always spoke ofWilliairs in tenns of the higbat
regard. Williams tried to persuade Mengs to come to EngUad
with an offer of 25,000 dollars, cash down, for which he wsi
to paint <iv« ycart m BngbuMl. The same araooBt was W

ANTON RAPHAEL MENG8 241

of an eccentric disposition, who took a violent
fancy to Mengs. To escape greater demnda
he had to begin this portrait, wluch, howerer,
renuuned unfinkhed because of the titter's sudden

departure for St. Petersburg.

The King often reminded him of the altar-
piece, and demanded it graciously enough, yet
as his Sovereign withal, from him. Amongst
several designs that Mengs had sketched and
kid before him, he selected an **Ascen»on of
oar Lord." Anton Raphael declared to his
King that he could not execute so large and
formidable a painting without being allowed to
do so at Rome under the eyes of Raflaello, as
it were. This was conceded. The King per-
ceived the justice of Mengs' argument, and saw,
bendes, that this would be the mly way to
protect this altogether too comi^tcent artitt from
the importunities of would>be ritters. There
was only one portrait which Mengs insisted upon
finishing before his departure, that of his friend
Annibali. "Anton Raphael Mengs painted his
friend, Domenico Annibali, in the year 1752," is
the inscription and dedication which he painted

his by way of expenses when he had once come, and he was
to have the choice of renewing the contract at the expiration of
the five years. Mengs refused on account of the obligationt
his Kiof bad put him andcr.

Q

242 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

in a corner. Mcngs showed it to his Sovereign,
according to orders, on the very morning of his
departure, when he was already booted and
spurred. "My dear Raphael," said the King,
"I find in this picture sometlung, I canaet
express it, which all other work which you hm
painted for me seems to lack." "Yes, your
Majesty," Mengs replied, "it is the friend— a
sort of being which kings do not become
acquainted with." The King smiled, gave him
his hand to kiss, and said : " Very likely you're
right ! Much happiness to you on your voyage,
and, when you have reached Rome, try to pMt
the fiiend in my picture also."

With tears in his eyes Anton Raphael left Kb
fatherland and travelled, in September 1751, with
his wife, an infant in arms, and his two sisters,
who did not wish to separate themselves ever
from him, towards Italy. Ismaei and the mair
servant remained belund, ami ^scovmd to Wi
loss how he would fare without him. Muqr
young husbands and lovers Ukewise were in de-
spair at Mengs' sudden departure, who had counted
upon having their portraits painted by Mcngs.
His coach was filled with such, all only begun, the
portraits of the King and Queen amongst them,
which he promised to finah at Rom*.

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 243

Rome was delighted to see him return, and
now looked upon him as upon her son.^ Shortly
after his return the San Luca Accademia elected
him an honorary member — a rare tlung, for he
was only twenty-four years old at the time.*
But the age of truly learned men is to be
reckoned only by their achievements,*

When Mengs thus arrived in Rome the third
time he had not yet a great name, nor was he
accustomed to splendid remunerations. The trip
had strained his purse so much that he had only
sixty scudi left when he arrived. Thus he visited
several amateurs to receive commisrions, among
than Cardinal Archinto. The Cardinal asked
lum to paint a " Christ in the Desert " as a com-
panion piece to a " St. John in the Desert," by
RaflFaello Santi, which he owned. Mengs, making

' On his way to Rome he stayed five months at Venice. He
painted there an oval picture of the " Virgin with the Chriit-
child," about two feet and a half high.

• The electioo took place on the strength of the well-known
picture of a "Reclining Magdalen" contemplating a scroll in
her band, which Mengs had painted shortly after he had
reached Rome.

• Benedetto XIV. founded a drawing academy about this
time, and Mengs was appointed a full professor of this new
school, much to the astonishment of the Italians. The system
adopted was that of Paris. Probably just this French system
iieiped more than anything else to render Mengs disliked and
persecuted about that time, since the Italians were accus-
tomed at their institutions to a graat deal more freedom, triiidi
they were wont to abuse.

244 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

use of an old canvas wMch resemUed that ci
Santi't jricturc, executed the task so we I that it
seemed as if both pictures had been the work of
one inspiration and one hand. He demanded
only sixty scudi for it, but the Cardinal paid him
fifty zecchina for it. "Now," Mengs said,
" your Eminency carries my fate in your Inadt."
Archinto soon showed the ptnure under the
guise of its being a iwwly discovered treasure.
Battoni was the first to have taken it for a work
of RafFaello's own pencil, and was surprised that
it should have remained hidden so long. Many
others agreed with him, and even the most re-
served agreed that it was a studio piece ^idi
RafFaello himself must have gone over very a-
tensively. The new picture was the talk ci die
town, and was discussed in a caft in Mengi'
presence. When he was asked about it, he sur-
prised every one by saying that he did not under-
stand how they could judge so erroneously,
they from whon a better discernment was to be
expected. He proclaimwi it to be an unimpo^
unt thing, and, when they exclaimed at that, ke
stated that he took it for the work of a beginner
who had studied RafFaello. He was scofW,
and, when he finally proclaimed himself to be
the author, jeered at ; but when he then drew

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 24S

his firtt sketch for the picture out of hi» pocket,
the mortified opponents had to succumb.

This episode served to spread the fame of
Saxony's Apelles, but it also raised envy. Many
of his companions and friends turned enemies,
and the Italians among them united in publishing
the well-known decltrmtion «g»tnst htm, which
only served to throw a greater light upon the
deserts of the object of their envy.

After Archinto's demise, this picture was sold
by auction for eighty doubloons, and the pur-
chaser passed it on at a profit to an Englishman,
who took it along with him into his country.

For the Duke of Northumberland Mengs
painted a copy of RaflFaello's "School of Athens,"
for which he was munificently rewarded. Then
he set to work upon the great altar-piece for the
Church at Dresden. Ismael arrived unexpectedly.
The house was too small to hold him, so he had
to live elsewhere, and much trouble was thus
averted, i. le was glad enough to see lus beloved
father and teacher again, but the maidservant did
not find her pUce among the women-folk. A
great poet, who knew the estimable and beautiful
sex better than another, says : " Ove donne son,
sempre son risse" ("Wherever women are, there
is disagreement "). ^

246 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Benedetto XIV. was too much trouUed by
other occurrencet, during the«e last ye«r» ci lus
reign, to employ our artist as much as he would
have liked, but he showed his regard for him by
voluntarily bestowing upon him the knighthood
of the order which the Popes have designated
for artists. The Cardinal Archinto, lately re-
turned from Poland, became Mengs' Mccenas
and friend, and in this latter capacity the famoat
John Winkelmann, the antiquarian, rivalled lum.
Wtnkelmann owed much to Mengs, both as to
worldly preferment and fructification of ideas, and
he extended much stimulation in return. Mengs
grew so fond of the antique that he fOTmed, at a
great expense, a collection of Etrurian vasei.
He maintained even a master could leam mudi
from them in the way of delicate forms, happy
poses, and beautiful draughtsmanship. This col-
lection hter on passed into the Vatican Library.

About this time Ismael at length converted
the maidservant to Catholicism, and married her
as a reward ; how much this was to the taste of
his children may well be imagined.

Many young people from beymid the Alps
frequented Anton Raphael's house, begging him
for instruction. He helped them all, and, modest
as he was, he seemed no more than a student

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 247
among them, as he went out with them to draw
from the nude. Anthony Maron, a Viennese
was his favourite scu.lar, on account of the gi«t
expectations which he raised, and Uter on ful-
filled. Meng, gave him hii sister, There- Con-
cordia, M • wife ; the other rirter, JuU^ enteied
later on ft convent at Jesi.

In 1756 the war had recommenced m Saxony,
consequently Mengs' pension was discontinued ;
but he enjoyed a European repuUtion now, and
could well support himself and his father, who,
however, soon returned home with his new wife.
Mengs now felt . de«re to attempt fresco paint-
,ng. After a few triiOs which turned out well,
he ariced permission of the Abbot of St. Eusebius.
a church of the Celestins at Rome, to pamt a
fresco on their ceiling gratuitously. The Father
was glad enough to grant him permis«on, and
Mengs immediately began hb task, which all
connoisseurs now admire; indeed it look, u if
it had been done in oils. The Abbot then begged
lum to p«nt «! alttt-pece for the Monastery of
Salmon.. This was agreed to upon almost the
same terms. These tfe things which can be told

of a Mengs only.

When Benedetto XIV. died and was sue
cceded by Clemente XIII.. Mengs painted two

248 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

.rtnits of the new Pope, one for the Ptlmo
Rezxontco ftt Venice, and the other for dtt
Pope*t palace at Rome, where it was let into
the most beautiful nlver and gilt frame dnt
was ever made.*

He now painted a " Mary at the Door of
the Temple" for the Chapel of Cascrto. This
was commissioned by the Queen of Naplo, a
daughter of Augustus III. He took the paat^
ing over tn person to Naples, and reached il

* When he received this order, he announced to his Holinen
that he had heard Souplevas had painted Benedetto XIV. oa
his knees ; he, however, was not accustomed to work in thit
position, and, if his Holiness desired to have a good portrait,
he would have to allow him to do it sitting. This was granted.
The papal portraits used to be painted entirely in the palace,
and with the help of a lay figure. Mengs had accustomed hini-
self to singinft and whistling while at work. He was repi^
manded, and told to remain silent when in presence of ik
Holiness ; but he always fell back into his habit FinaBf I*
told the Monsignore, who was repeatedly admonishing him:
" What you are with the Pope, I am at home with the King,
and I think you might imagine that I would keep iilent of
my own accord if I could help it. The Pope was not pleased
with the picture, and said : " Though he had heard the paint-
ing praised, he did not consider the picture particularly beatt-
fid." Whereupon Mengs rejoined : " It was quite a LiilliMaif
thing for painters to hear their work i^raised highly by A, and
not at all by B." The first papal portrait was always painted for
the honour of the thing, and for the sake of acquiring the title
of Papal Painter. When the second portrait was demanded,
Mengs got even with the Pope. He asked, " Whether his
Holiness was pointed as to his prices ? The English gave him
a hundred zecchine." he said, "and this was his usual pries."
It was granted, and he painted the second one also.

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 249

iust before their Majesties departed for Spain,
which throne they had inherited. The Queen
chid him for having been so long, for she had
wanted him to do some portraits for which
there now was no more time. The King said :
" He'll do those at Madrid, to wluch he will not
fiul to folW us." Mengs was appcnnted hb
punter4n-ardin«7. He did some work for the
new king and then returned to Rome, where
he painted a " Parnassus " on the ceiling of the
main piece in Cardinal Alessandro Albani's Villa
di Porta Salara.

As soon as their Majesdes had reached Madrid,
Carlos III. summoned Mengs tluther, offering
him 6000 scttdi a year as a salary, berides other
preferments. Our painter left Rome in August
of the year 1761, taking his wife and little
children with him ; but his soul remained behind
in the Vatican and Campidoglio. Among other
canvases he took the big Dresden picture along
with him, of which Augustus III. was constantly
reminding htm, m spite of the war troubles.
By the time Mengs arrived in Spain, his pro-
tectress, the Queen, had died. But Carlos III.
was expecting him anxiously, and was full of
plans for the furthering of art. He desired a
revival of Spain's old fame as a land of art,

250 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

and wbhed to rejuventte the Academy. He
made Mengs elaborate a plan for a system of

instruction ; it laid especial stress upon the study
of anatomy, and it was adopted. A chirurgcon
was ordered to take up the instruction, but
instead of limiting himself to osteology and
myology he taught internal anatomy and thbgs
that artitts do not need. A great oppontkm
arose; the old punters, as well as the young
students, exclaimed t^inst the foreigner Mengs.
The King did not interfere in the conflict, but
he showed his confidence in his painter by
commissioning him to paint all the ceilings of
the royal suite al fresco. Mengs, who had
been thoroughly (^IRsnded, could now aflfwd to
turn lus back upon the Academy.

Old Ismael died in the year 1764 (on the
26th of December). The bold widow claimed
all his belongings to the exclusion of his
children She even went to Spain to assail her
stepson. ut he calmed her down, and behaved
so liberally that she returned qwte cont«^'
He was too magnanimoua to snckle a.
thing that could be settled by money; > *
was aggravated and annoyed. And, as always m
such cases, he consoled himself with hard work.

After punting the ceilings above mentioned,

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 251

many royal portraits, and some sniall travelling
altars, he finished the Dresden altar-piece, which
was admired for several weeks in a chamber at the
palace in Madrid prior to being shipped to Dresden.

During his work upon the ceUmga he fell
ill with • w»eUing of hit legs, which the docton

ascribed to the conrinual dampness of the rooms
where he painted al fresco upon the wet walls.
They were afraid he was going to die upon their
hands, so he had permission from the King to
depart for Italy, but with the strict understand-
ing that he was to return and finish the work
begun. He trtrelled by easy stages to Jwrcelona,
with nothing but pwnting to relieve his melan-
choly. He took boat, but had to disembark at
Monaco as the swelling in his legs had grown
so dangerous. There Prince Grimaldi, well
acquainted with his work, had his private
physician attend him, and he had such success
that our artist was nearly cured. Out of
gratitude Mengs painted the prince's portrsit.

Mengs then cwne to Genoa, where the Academy
honoured him, and itself, by electing him an
honorary member. Luca Cangiaso asked him to
paint his wife's portrait. He would have stayed
longer to do more work at Genoa, but the King
of Spun, hearing of his recovery with much

Pi:

252 STORIES OF (^RMAN ARTISTS

pleasure, bade him contmue to Florence end bde
him punt the Royal House there, die Archdiike,
the Archduchess, and their four duldrm. These
and the portrait of a Lord Cooper were all he
did in Florence at the time. For the San Luca
Academy, as soon as it heard he was back in
Italy, elected him its president in absentia, a
thing which had never been done before except
in the case ci Le Brun.

He arrived at Rome, in February 177 1, «i«
thusiastically welcomed by friends whom news
of his illness at Monaco had alarmed. Upon his
arrival he found there an order for an altar-piece
on wood, a " Noli me Tangerc," to be placed in a
church at Oxford. It was fully as good as the
painting of the same subject which Barocd did
for the Cata Bonvisi at Lucca. All Rcmie iodnd
to see it at the ViUa Medici, where Mengi wh
painting it.

Scarcely was it finished when an order came
from the King of Spain to paint him a " Nativity."
This was so successful that everybody agreed
Mengs had {vofited immensely by his Spani^ so*
joum. A magic light issues from the Christ-^ld,
just as in the Notte " of Allegri, and mingles
with the light from the torch of the shepherd.

The Dowager Elcctress of Sakony, at that time

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS a53

visiting Rome, desired extremely to

picture by Mengs which she had chenAed from

the days of her youth, and had seen progreswig

under her very ey... ^^^^^"^^^^
is said that the wa. overcome to auch a di«ree

that she did not utter a word for several days.
It belonged to her Royal brother-in-Uw now, but

she ordered a replica then and there.

Pope Clemente XIV. himself was little var«l
in art affairs, but his treasurer. MonsignoreGio.
.nni Angelo Braschi. represented to him that he
should install an Antiquarium tnd Sculpture
Gallery of Antiques in the suite of rooms which
Innocent Vm. once had inhabited in the Vatican.
It was a matter of finding a suitable housmg for
the Belvedere Apollo, the Uokoon, the Barbmm
Juno, the Antinous, &c., and also for Ae Jrooztt.
the medals and coins, and antique jewelbry, Md
for the papyri. Meng.' advice waa .Aed m the
matter, and he devised a pla. for the aomptuou.
decoration of one of these halls. Upon the
recommendation of Cardinal Archmto Mengs
was asked to paint the ceiling in this hall. The
choice of subject was entrusted altogether to our
artist, who was just as learned a savant aa he was
a good painter. He executed a much-admired
" Allegory with a Htstoria, Time, Janua, Fama.

254 STORIES OF GERI4AN ARTISTS

and Guardian." Above the windows there are
putti playing with birds in a swamp. One of
the birds, the ibis, inhabits the swamps of the
Nile, the other, a white pelican, those near
Rftvoiiu. These are the {daces where the plant
from which papyrus is made grows, and dm
ingeniously Mengs alluded to the uses to whkji
the Hall which he decorated was put. Above
one of the doors he painted Moses, as being
the earliest writer of Books; above the other,
St. Peter, as being the Guardian over the Books
ci the New Testament. Instead of the usual
cornice between ceiling and walls, he chose a
meander Meze of gilt metal, since he judged that
a cornice at a place where it was not needed as a
protection against rain was illc^ical and wro^
While he was painting here, Clemente XIV. sur-
prised him frequently, and was delighted at seeing
such fine wwk in progress. If he had known
how dangerous it all was for Mengs, he would
have been extremely grieired. Fresco painting,
with which our painter had beccMne quite «a»>
moured, always had a bad effect upon his health.

Clemente XIV. put so much faith in Mengs'
artistic abilities that he entrusted to him the
designing of the medal which was struck in cele-
bration of the fourth year of hu popedom. The

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 255

obverse showed the Pope's head, the rcvene
the Three Sister Arts, beautifully posed in »
magnificent trade. Mengs* inacriptioii rewU,
" Arttbus restituti*."

In 1773 Menr pwd a visit to Naples, where
he painted the Queen and a second portrait of
the King, who had been quite young when he had
painted him before. Back in Rome he painted
portraits of Cardinal Zelada and the Prime
Minister Azarra, of Baron Edelihdm. and lartly
one of himself, at the request of Count Lattanzio
of Firmian. Loaded with honours and gifts
from the Pope, Mengs now returned to Florence,
where he spent several months, and again painted
his own portrait at the Archduke's command,
for the gallery of /iutoritratti in the Uffizi.

Here he received a summons from His Majesty
the Spanish King, who wm impatient to hare
him back again and finish his work at Madrid,
so that he might at last remove the scaffolding,
which was sdll sanding as Mengs had left it.
Our painter sent his family back to Rome, and
proceeded leisurely through the Savoy and France
to Madrid. Even then he was all but detamed
by the Royal House at Turin. No pwnter was
ever so sought after by kings and qneeni as
Mengs. Hit voyi«e waa non« of tht pleaianteat.

256 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

by the way, he being of indifferent health and
oppressed with fears as to the welfare of his be-
loved family. So, when he arrived at Madrid
finally, the King found him melancholy and weak,
bttead of thoroughly well agun, aa he Ind ex-
pected. He tried to reaaaure him by fanKin of
a kind which he knew would be the most wel-
come. He allowed each of Mei js' five daughters
a pension of 200 scudi per annu: and promised
to care for his two sons.

Out of gratitude, rather than in a spirit of en-
thusiasm, Mengs at once fell to work upoa the
ceilings. But the greater part yet remained m-
touched, and the more he punted, the more he
wanted to paint. He again overworked himself,
spending his nights, instead of in refreshing tke^
in the elaboration of treatises upon painting.

The King saw him waning fast, and so mag-
nanimously decided to content himself with thoas
works by Mengs which he ah%ady posaeased. ib
commanded him to return to Italy for hia health,
confirmed him in his positioi us principal pwiter-
in-ordinary, with a lifelong pension of 3000 scudi
per annum, and appointed him Director of the
Spanish Academy at Rome. The only thing he
requested was to receive such paintings as the
state Mengs' health and his indinatkm na§^

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 257

permit him to finish. To show his apprecia-
tion of the royal bounty, Mengs sent to the
King his wonderful collection of casts from the
antique. It came tcroH wu in more than one
hundred and twenty padcing-caaes. Mei^ had
had the moat of thne caata made twice, so he
still retained for his further study and use almoat
IS fine a collection as the one he gave away.

Notwithstanding the severity of the winter,
Mengs left Madrid in company with Don Pietro
VanvitelH, the architect and engineer. They
went by way of Bitcaya and France, arrivn^^ m
Rome on the i ith of May 1777. Our pkaaun
in seeing lum agun among v» was tempered by
the state in which we saw him. He was deadly
pale, and looked quite wasted.

Pius VI. had ascended the Papal throne. There
were orders awaiting Mengs from the King of
Poland, the Ouuina of Ruana, the Archbishop
of Sahtborg, and odiera. For the ArchlMalKqp
he sketched a fine oompontion o£ the ** Resurrec-
tion of our Saviour." But an urgent order from
England for a "Perseus and Andromeda," for
which a great sum was offered, was the first
picture he painted. The subject attracted him
particularly. Again all R<mie for wedu flodsad

to the Baiherim Palace, where Mengs IWed, to

11

258 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

see Mid adnure tlut work. Tet there were not
wantbg the voices of detractors and scoffers,
as happened with Apelles. The present writer
himself heard Mengs several times step out
and take such people in hand, kindly instruct-
ing them and replying to their abnird qwitiOHii
Cardinals, prelates, princes, ladies, r(iil%iMM|
priests, and monks came — and all oi them ds*
parted full of admiration. The Pope had it
brought to him into his palace. It seemed ss
if the great era of Michelangelo and RaffuUo
had come again. Finally the "Andromeda" wu
shipped to England, but a lucky French {mate
captured it. When Iw heard of it llMfi
laughed, and said: ** Andromeda ougkt whm
known better than to trust herself on the ocean
again after the operience Ac's had." The
English amateur tried in vain to ransom her,
and to console him Mengs promised him s
replica, a promise he did not live to fulfiL

In 1777 excavations between the EscpnKaiai
the Viminai hiUs, within the gromids o# ika
Villa Negroni, brought to light anti^ ruini
with puBtings of Venus, Adonis, Cujndo,
Bacchus, and Ariadne, besides beautiful onu^
mentol designs. Mengs, who, ever since he
had seen Naples, nuintained that the ancients

iSi STORIES OF GERMAN A v. MR

sec ^ad «drotre this work. Yet th-t- tm

wanting the voice* of detra ror« ^o<&n,

as HA-pcned ^v'■■lh A.peUcs. '1 he . r ^ wn»er

himseit' ht^tru M-ngs sevcra : ii ' ' at

and ' <c h >i people ui hatv - »«•

r.g 'hcr-i .i!id rr.-lv'.ng t -.'leir -^os -^aim

-^'Is prelates, piiiu ladies "

^ ana inr.W cam and all o» i^^i

■ ir-i' li ♦ udmiratK The i'--}**^ ^

.f e g era or M' .(.langelo and K^^teli-
aaa ca- • agaif.. Im^Ha n^" ' Andr.-'.ic.:a" w»
ski, -d to nclar d i .ucky Frcrch paits
cat - re:' heard of "'t Ntagi

ia..i:;hf.-a, and said : " Andromeda ougbf te "WW
know" better th.-'^ to trust her if Oh • He '
again <ftcr the .icricnce she's rkJ.** T
Lngl.sh mateur iriea in vain ■ > ^ -1*001 ^
and to iRSolf- ..m Mcngs pron h'
rep!i-. i, a pr -mif .- ^- >Vi i r .r T t. ^uifii

the '> =■! ^ills. '^in • .. .

viiis Ntv:"!- brotign' to !i ' '
with pair til iS of Vmu';. ^ci
Bacchus, am" Ariadne, be'^
mentai ns. V -ng; - er

had sc'-n N.^r les, niainui. cu hat che

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 259

must have been as fine painters as they were
sculptors, at once visited the place, and not-
withstanding the dampness of the place, made
fine tinted drawings of thirteen walls with their
paintings. He persuaded the CMnpany who
had the excavations in hand to issue these in
copper engravings. Four of them have appeared
meanwhile.^ The text accompanying the publi-
cation of the ground-plan of the palace which
had been excavated is perhaps the most learned
thing of its kind ever issued ; it was written by
Mengs. A small marble Venus was unearthed
tt the same time, lacking a 1^. Now, though
Mengs was no sculptw, he undertook to restore
it, and his success vas so signal that now it is
difficult to distinguish his work from that of
the old Greek. This little statue came into the
cabinet of the Cavaliere Azarra.

To show how accurate Mengs' judgnaent of
antique sculptures was, it is wcNrth while to
relate an incident in pasMng wluch happened
two years ago. Among the ruins of the
Villa de' Pisoni, at Tivoli, a marble head in an
indifferent condition was found and brought to
the same Azarra, who asked Mengs* opinion
about it. When he came he immediately cried
' Bianconi'i account was printed in 178a

a6o STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

out: "An excellent work, of the period of
Alexander the Grait ! " Not all of the Roman
pr(^»sor8 present concurred with him. But
three days later the bust belonging to the
head, which had been found in the meantime,
was brought, and on it was found the letterng,
" Alexander, the son of PMUpp, the Mtcedoa.**

Nkngt also had lodgings in the VUk SuKii-
Cavallieri, which hMl been vacated on account
of the unhealthy air around there. But he
liked the place because some of the ceilings
had been painted by Lanfranco and Annibtle
Carracci. His sojourn there of course did not
help to improve his health, but it did act Inep
him from work. He eUbonrtod there d*«pi
of an altuvpieet for St. P^'s, wluch he hopd
would immortalise him. The subject was " Jesus
entrusting to St. Peter the care of His Fold, in
presence of all the Apostles." In order to execute
this picture he hired a large room of the Mar^
chese Accoromboni, enlarged the windows, andfcsd
them glazed with pure nurror glass, a«t ikt
oidinary window glast, in order to obtttn ite tat
light. A sudden illness interrupted his work;
but he once more recovered. Then his We
caught a fever, to which she succumbed within
a few days, upon the 3rd of April 1778. With

ANTON KAPHAEL MENGS 261

her Mengs buried lus happy days ; from that
momoit oa Us tool wu steeped in everlasting

gri^ and unrest. Two days he sat by the side of
her corpse, refusing food and sleep. He made a
cast of her face, intending to model a bust and
execute it in marble therefrom. But this relief
was denied him, for, from sheer emotion, he broke
the cast. His grief overstepped all bounds ; but
Ik did not shed a ni^le tear.

As was quite natural, his own health liuled
presently, and for a long time he could not
think of doing any work. Two of his daughters
were married, the one to the Spanish engraver,
Manuel S. Carmona ; but, instead of rejoicing,
Mengs rather increased in melancholy at loung
two more mmbert ci Ms beloved family.

An order from the fiunily of the Marchem
Rinuccini, of Fiwence, for a " Descent frcmi the
Cross " arrived about this time. The lugubrious
subject harmonised with the then state of Mengs'
feelings, so he at least sketched a drawing for
them. The grief of the principal figures is
wonderfully ex{Mreased in tins composi^m. He
was just on the pdnt of tintiiig it when an
urgent commMid of the %Nmish King came,
ordering him to paint an "Annunciation" for
Se Royal Chapel at Anmjues. He at oace

26i yrORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

set to work about it, not heeding the condition
of his health, and to complete the naeafure
undertook, out of mere courtesy, to paint the
portrait of Don Onorato Caetani. He almost
completed this; but knowing that his solution
was imminent, he set everything else aside, intent
upon completing at least the "Annunciation"
before he should be called away. Much of
this was done in bed. Strangers were no loi^
adnutted.

In this deplwable condition I saw him, and
entreated Wm to consider his health; but hb
thoughts were with his wife in the other world,
where he soon hoped to meet her. I began to
praise his " Annunciation," and expatiate upon
its beauties, but he answaxd : " How tnffing k
all that, compared with the beauties wWch I kope
noon to behoW." After a few days I kwnt that
he had moved for better air into Salvatore Rosa's
old house on the Monte Fincio, and I was greatly
relieved to hear that he began to feel better there.
On Saturday, June 26th, he wrote me a long
letter, in which he does not touch upon his UfaMM.
As long as I live I shall treasure it u my mm
valuable poaaesiion; for, beskiet being a proof
lut gca^tttdc towards the Saxon Court, it is at
once the last work of thoae hands which I should

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 263

like to call divine— full of the nghteoasneas and

disinterestedness which ever were the mainsttys
of his character. On Sunday he grew worse.
On Monday it cheered him to hear that the Pope
was out again for the first time, after a l<Mig
illness, to receive an embasiy from Quna. Hm
veneration for thb Pope was extraordinary. On
St Peter's Day, the 29th of June 1779, the pride
of Saxony, Rome's and Spain's honour, Anton
Raphael Mengs died, fifty-cme years and some
months old.

He was buried by the side of his wife — ^tlw
members <^ the San Lnca Accademia, his num*
berless pupils, and friends making up a great
concourse of mmmiers. At the command of
the Nbdid a post-mortem oounination was held.
Mengs was supposed to have inclined towards
consumption, but his lungs and other intestines
were discovered to be intact. Very likely over-
work and mental strain had brought about lui
uadnwly death.

If Menp had been as great in eoonomict at
in pain^ he would have kft a weaMiy family
bdiind him. He was not a iprty to some of those
passions which easily decimate great fortunes, but
there was no fine instrument, no statue, no cast
from the antique, no Etruscan vase, no book on

a64 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

grt, no engnmng, and so dnwing by mf pm
mMKrwhidi he would not Iwye liked to poMCM.
Even the exorbitant charge* of designing dcalen
seldom dissuaded him from purchasing. Add
thereto that he had twenty children (of whom,
indeed, but seven came to be grown up), Us
frequent journeys to Gemumy, Spain, and Italy,
most of which he undertook in conpHif U ha
entire ftmUy, his menifokl chwittible expendir
tuics, the excellenqr of the education which he
offered his children, and the elegant and expensive
manner of his living, and you will easily conclude
that very little of the two hundred thousand
scudi which he earned in the course of yean OB
have been left over at the tiiB» at hm dolh.
His table, though never aroewitng what «at
should expect to find in the liuntiy ei a weO-
to^o artist, pew to be expensive on account of
the way strangers abused his hospitality— people
who, though they had not been invited, were
never turned away. Through the interventio»ef
Cardinal Riminaldi and the Ambaasadfir Ax«tt>
the orphana were aiifficietttly w«U provided foe.
The younger son received a military post at the
WmmA^ af the Kmg of Spain; the elder took
ot^m. Of the three unmarried daughters, one
has only a few days ago espoused a scribe of the

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 265

Cardinal Pallavicini; the two others are stili
looking forward to the fate which the heavens
have in store for them.

Anton Raphael Mengs was of small suture
and lean. In has younger days he was handsome,
in spite ol hi* sallow c<Miiplexi(m; but overwork
niiaed hiegood looks. He remained of a lively
dispontion mitil his death ; eanly angered, but
also quickly appeased. Whomever he had wronged
in his anger, he overwhelmed with gifts to com-
pensate the injury received.^ He could not see
misery without desiring to alleviate it, and ia»
bounty was more generoat tban that oi othm.
His smaUett abaa were silver pieces, and I hsre
known ham to give away ducats. Bendes ad-
miring mnsic,* he esteeoMd Iteeiatttte,* e^edaUjr

* Mengs was of sanguine temperament, and inclined to be
humorous and easy-going, especially with his pupils. When
he corrected their woA he did this waggishly. This sbocked
the sen&ibilities of the French pupils, and they gradually left
him. When interrogated upon tUa pmnt, Mmga Hud that, aa
30 many of his pupils w«w «ld«r tea ba, iM «i Mt tal IM
could play the schoolmaster towards them, and he LonaafMatlf
adopted a sprightlier method of correcting their worfc.

■ He was particularly fond of Corelli's operas, and knew
many of his o^^fiM and tmdanits by heart. He also took
some inttnictina oatt* clavicembalo, in order to become better
acquainted wididwnatim of duwda. InconpanywithChovalioT
Devizet ho studied the paialkitan of aichbactan and iniM6

* Amoi«iaibo^aapateii«lHi|iriM4P. LonsMo^s work
most.

266 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

historical works, and among these the Greek most,
but Pausanias above all. Every day he read a
chapter in the Bible ; few were as well acquainted
with it as he. He understood Latin well enough,
and commanded the German, Italian, French,
Spuudt tongues, and oren the English fiurly welL

Of his titeivry work a *' IXwwtition
Beauty " has appeared in German, and one *' On
the Paintings in the Royal Palace at Madrid," in
Spanish. Other MSB. are about to be published.'
He loved Italian poets like Michelangelo, and
esteemed Dante highly. Hence he had his gilt
of oratory. His coovenatkm was fivaly mi »>
teresting, but always acrioot; he dettated am
clMttti^. He lUfied very oradk to ikeam mi
and he did it so dearly because lib tdett
clear on that point.

I believe I may safely say that Mengs never
detracted anybody in his life. If he were unable
to speak well of a person, he held his peace.
Paintna, evoi the mott mediocre, wen not de>
9piKd by lum ; he used to muntain that paintfaig

1 The principal other literary remains are— " ReAectkms
vpoB Ra&etlo. Alkgri, Vecelli, and tbc ABCMntt," ** Spcsdl
on the Means of Reviving the Arts in Spain,'' "Lettnt w
the Sculptor Falconet," " Remarks upon the Life of AUegri,*
" Practical Instruction in Painting," " L'^ter to Guilnuurd on
the Judging of Paiatiagi," "AMdgfd AcoouBt ef FasMMt
Paintwrs," &c

ANTON RAPHAEL MENGS 267

WM nobter tad more dificuh than poetry, so that
even those who could not go beyond a moderate
level still were worthy of some respect. He had
an uncommonly high opinion of Pompeo Battoni
and Domenico Corvi. Himself he calkd ooe
of the smallest and mott ttnimportant among
painters, and he did tMa in audi • manner th«t
the ttttimtiatad nught bt deonTed ; but I do not
know whether it was Ws real opinion at heart.
He thought extremely well of his father's work,
and always said that he had never been able to
equal the head painted in oUs by his father which
found its way into the Dresden Gallery.

Hit boit WBi placed in the Pantheon at Ro«e»
by Axert*, near tlie buH-portrMli Rift*»tto
Santi and Annibnle Gamed.

CHAPTER X
DANIBI. CHOOOWnCKI

Danisl Nicolavs Cbooowiicki wn dttcmdcd
from a Po&h htaaky duit lad settled for tm
gcnentiom priw to his birth «t Diiitstc, iriiidl
was subject to Pohnd until the year 1793* whm

it fell to Prussia. Chodowiecki communicating
this fact to the Foiish astronomer Joseph Leski,
also speaks of the correct pronunciation of his
fiuaity name, wluch, he writes, should be Cho-
do-vee-«tz'-kee (I am ttthstitutiag an En^ik
phonetic spelling for lus German), the tntdal
Ch to sound likt: a very heavily aspirated H, die
third syllable slurred over into the fourth, upoa
which the accentuation rests.

He was bom in this famous and extremely
picturesque old Hanse city on the i6th of
October 1726, in <me of the fine gabled housea
of the Holy-Ghott Street. His hibet was a
gnun merdttnt, and Daniel was the second child,
but the eldest son. He wrote about his early
days : " My father painted miniatures for his own

OANIEL CHODOWIECKI a69
amusement, «id gave me my first iustruction in
this art. However, he trmined me really for a
business life, and so it happened that at k» d«th,
which occurred in the year 1740, I had M yet
learnt very li«tle of d«inagt»i!W«tiiig. Altar
his dwA my ■odttr't sbMr, whose fanuly name
wts Aywr, and wiw wm • much better printer
than my father. fSfC me some further lessons.
But I was soon apprenticed in the shop of a
dealer in spires, where I remained for a year ind
a half only, because the burins* firitod, tad w
the year i743 I w« Mirt to Infi^ J^VT*

t shop wWeh bdoiV* *

Duiiel wta bookkeeper there, and managed to
prist imnk«w«s for snuff-boxes in spare hours.
These were sold by his uncle Ayrer to various
merchants at Berlin. Daniel had been glad
enough to come to Berlin in the hopes of gammg
new uisFttration and eneoufifemBit of Ids.wt
yearnings there. But ha was sorely disappawtod.
At dut ^ ^erim wa» minor in imporunce
to Daatsk : the fcw artists whom Frederick the
Great emptoyed were aliens and inaccessible to
him. There was nothing to see in the way of
Fine Art, and nobody to learn from. A few
indifferent prints, some casts, an «W ^'"•"'"•^If
or so, were the only avrilable models upon wHdi

ayo STOKLES OF GE&MAN ARTISTS

lie oonld form hb taste and hb ikilL Aynr, tfe

unclf , ced that these artistic inclinations
wcrth while cultivating from a pecuniary point of
view. So he had Daniel and his brother taught
the ai : of enamelling by a certain Haid, a punter
who probably belonged to the well-known Aug»-
burg faauly of artists. Daniel's profiriancy
becune so gnat tint uncle Ayrcr piessily
allowed him to give up buraiCM altogether and
derote himself exclusively to art. He soon made
a name for himself in his modest way, and
demanded prices far above those which the good
people of Berlin were accustomed to pay for thdr
nmuatures and drawings.

How cramped his surroundings
appetfs in fuU force iHien we hear what he ia|a
about his endeavours to advance to a higher state
of draughtsmanship and to pursue painti.ig in
oils. He had managed to secure palette, brushes,
and colours, and one evening in 1757 he was
suddenly ** takm with a feverish desire," Ir
writes, ** to take up cnl painting serioasljr. I sat
my palette and painted an old man's heed that
very night. You cannot imagine my deU^
at perceiving that it would be possible for me
to practise oil painting at nights, for during day-
light other work kept me busy. The way 1

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 271

proceeded wm thus : I spread a piece of canvas
horizontally upon a table, placed a Ump at the
farther end, and caught the rays of the light
by means of a lens, winch I conducttd aU oftr
the canT«irtw«f«rIiieed«dtt. Thii prwrUtei
ne wick •dfciwt light, and I printed until oftt-
come hf tfeefi. i now painted an old man asking
an old woman for her daughter in marriage ; then
the story of Eleazar, who, led by Laban, proposes
to Bethuel to bestow hi- Rebecca upon Isaac ;
thereupon several domestic scenes. One evening,
. ting Mr. Rode at tlK Aeademy, I beheld the
Biad«l atiU imdrcMed, aaatad by the ikk of an iron

ttove. Then was little light in the room besides
that which the store furnished, and so I had a
splendid Rem '^ mdt- like effect before me. I
made a sketch of it at once, and when I reached
home, the drawing Ic it the Academy being
over, I b.t up my pale e . mttd the pictnie,
finkhing it by three o'clc k r exv morning. When
samoMrwtiMe caniB I act a d^y afory w«k a«de
for paintii^ in oil ; yet I managed to accomplisl
only wvf little, and indeed finished only a few
portraits, some stodiea, and a c ;>uple of his.toi-ical

pictures." .

About thb course at the Aeademy he wiim :
"This study of drawmg from the Ihring model

STORIES OF CARMAN ARTOTS
lattad bm a venr f««r jrein. « Whrt l-*nd isn't
that enough? • I hear the finiihed ardtt
ing. No, my dear fellow 1 If you dnw hmt
the life all your bom days, at the end of them
you'll find that there is a lot to be learned still,
and that you have not drawn enough. But after
« wWk especttUy those who needed the practice
mow grew timl of the study and suyed away
We h«i to give it up, Mr. Pode Md I. w^ j w«^
the hst to come." He h«l r^tly uoertiiiNd
that study of this description was the oniythiif
to guard one against mannerism, sad niMtieriM
he so much wanted to avoid. «• Mannerism as
always a deviation fron- trv h, and every devia-
tioo of this kind is ever a fault Whoever
imitstet the muwer of another artist accentuates,
ineressn upon it: he doe jot corapMt hii
virtues, but en'aigcs urjon his ftults tad
them more apparent. It is just as when sga»>
body tries to imitate the looks of another person :
he exaggerates such traits as distinguish the other
person from the generality of humanity, and
diitOTts his fkce wto • grinMoe."

The pnntings which Chodowiwdd produced
were rustic and pastoral scenes, more or km
mitating the style of W.tteeu, Lnncm, sad
Pater. His own criticism on mannerism i^ipiiet

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 273

excellently to them. The best are such as dis-
play, instead of the ordinary Arcadian scenery,
lome view <^ BerUn *ad its near surrouadii^.
Once oalj h» attempted a loftier tubject. In
1762 the Calvinist Jean Galas, a merchant of
Toulouse, had been unjustly put to the rack and
executed upon a false charge brought forth by
the French clergy. It will be remembered that
Voltaire took up his cause, and with his " Sur la
tolerance" wm instrumental in i»t»ving Calas's
innocence as to the charge <^ murder which had
been laid to his door. In 1765 the French king
made such amends to the family as he could,
and Calas's fame at least was cleared of obloquy.
In this same year there ..^peared a print by
E)elafos8e, after a design by de Carmontelle,
representing the liberation of Calas's family, and
it found its way to Berlu, where Chodowiedd,
who belonged to the Reformed or Calrinist
Church, was naturally highly interested in the
whole afiair. He was inspired to paint in oils
a picture of Calas in chains, taking leave of his
family before being led to execution. The
painting possesses a good deal of the stagey
wntimentality of Greuse, ladung, of coarse, the
Frenchman's skill and also the laigeaesa of his

pcant of view. It is important prindpally for

s

274 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

the fact of its being virtually Chodowiecki's last
painting in oil. It came to acquire this position
fit>m the hct that he etched » pitte after his own
{Mcture, and this pbte established his leputittmi
as an etcher on so firm a bans, tluit erer uku
he w_s overwhelmed with orders to such a
gree that he no longer found time for any other
work besides etching. He wrote about this time
to his mother : " Je m'amusai k la gravure, mes
ouvrages piurent au public, jc voulais 6tre pcintrc,
le public voulut que je sois graveur, h* bien, je le
suis plus que jamais et on m'encourage de tout
c6t6 en me payant tout ce que jc demande."

Chodowiecki had been working desultorilf wiA
the needle ever since the year 1757. One of his
plates, etched in 1763 after the peace of Hubertus-
burg had closed the Seven Years' War, brought
him to the notice of Frederick the Great He
had composed a frosty aUegory, " I^ace bringing
back the King," and Frederick was wprescnud as
a Roman emperor. He was not much taken
with the artist's work however, and is said to
have remarked, " Ce costume n'est que pour les
hfros du thatrc." The king's adverse criticism
can hardly be prtMiounced out of place in this
case, for Chodowiecki laeked the high mindirinsM
"■»■■■! / for the inventioa of a rmitf good aUa-

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 275

gory. But even if his own efFort would hive
been better, this hankering after royal favour
would not have been attended with any success,
for Frederick the Great was so completely biassed
in favour of French art and letters, that he had
no interest to spare for the productions of his
own subjects. What the king failed to do, his
subjects amply compensated for. Authors and
publishers pressed engagements upon Chodo-
wiecki, so that, industrious as he was, he sometimes
found scarcely time to breathe. This continued
undl his okl age. In 1794, when Chodowiecki
was almost sevmty years oki, he wrote one day
to a friend, Councillor Becker : '* Last ni^t I sat
up drami^ until between one and two o'clock,
and was overpowered by sleep and fell off my
chair sideways, like this," and he draws a sketch
of his fall. Much earlier, when he was still at
the height of his powers, he wrote to a lady, the
Countess Solms, with whom he had fimned one
of those sentimental, pktonic fnenddups of trhkh
the eighteentii century wu so food : ** I wanted
10 much to treat a series of historical sul^ects
some day in which I should be able to venture
on the precincts of a real, grand style, beautiful
draperies, picturesque poses, artistic composition
and lighting, but I always had to stick to the

276 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

dallying, fashion-trumpery of the novels. There
were some plates which I had to do for Lavater,
and tiwre are sdll some more of the same descrip-
tion waitiiig for me ; but here comes a man with
a quick order for a couple of dozen designs for a
new translation of 'Ckrissa,' and that mutt be
attended to. I was commissioned to draw uxtf
designs for Salzmann's ' Moralisches Elcmentar-
buch,' of which only about a third have been
completed, when in steps a Danish publisher and
wants a number of plates for 'The Death of
Baldur," by Ewald, and as many for another book
by the same author called • The Fidiermen.' So
now I must try to dive into a mythical Gothic age
and study the costumes of peasants and fisherfolk."

The work which Chodowiecki accomplished in
consequence of this unusual requisition of his
talent, and by dint of an exemplary application,
amounted to a little over two thousand etched
pictures, besides innumoable dnwii^ These
latter were partly portraits, partly sketches and
preparatory studies for the etchings, and partly
finished designs which other artists etched.

Perhaps half of all this work was destined
to ornament the duodecimo almanacs which
flourished well into the beginning of the nine-
teenth century. The rest are book illustntiMi.

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 277

Less than a fourth of the whole mitpat fimtiftf
of distinct plates, issued without any accompany-
ing letterpress. The invention of almost all
of the designs rested with Chodowiecki. His
work, taken as a whole, is the German counter-
put of the work of Moteau, Etaen, NforillMr,
Cochin, Choffard, Gravelot, See. Wkerow
France boasts of at least half-a-dozen exquisite
artists of this class and at least half-a-dozen further
good ones, Chodowiecki bears, as far as Germany
is concerned, nearly the whole of the burden
upon his own shoulder* : there is really no one
to be named alongside <^ him, and the secondary
masters are very infmor. His w»k compures
with the French very much as we expect it
would compare, and somewhat as PrusMS, then
a rising but sorely oppressed State, compared
with favoured France, the leader of the world.
He lacked training, and consequently failed to
acquire the mw^lous dnt^htsmanship and
the perfect skill of his French colleagues. Yet
he fought 3 noble battle, omsidering what diffi-
culties he had to encounter. The facility of his
inventive powers is remarkable : as long as there
is no question of a sheer lack of knowledge, for
which he cannot be called to account, to hinder
him, his work is truly good. The Berlin of his

278 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

day did not furnish him with the possibility
of being rightly informed about the looks of
a fourteeiith<eentury knight, or • ChiiwM
emperor, or a Bsru Indka, and when h$ h
f(m«d to illustrate books with such Mbjcet^
he naturally falls short of the mark, uncon-
sciously trying to hide his failings behind a
theatrical, empty style. But when no more than
the picture of everyday life around him was
required of him, when he illuttnted Leasing's
**Minna von Bamhelm," or etched thoM d«licMMii
little platRs with patterns of head-drcawa of tk
day, and fashion pictures of this nature, he wm
nearly if not quite on a par with the beat Frandl
illustrators.

From the moment of his being permanently
eataUished aa an illustrator and etcher, Cho-
dowieckt*a life flowed on m a very smooth current.
He had married the daughter of a French
Refugie family, and held some Church and civk
offices. He had missed going to Italy. When
he freed himself from his connection with the
business of his uncle Ayrer, he wrote of this
period: "This (the summer of the year 1754)
would hare been the correct time for an lulian
trip: I did not so much aa entertain the klea
•erioualy for a moment, nor did I think mnck

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 279

of such a plan." Because, it appeara, he thought
that he had noticed many of his. colleagues came
back from luly quite spoilt, and ever after he
would thny reomnmead to anybody who adced
htm for hk advice, ** Do not go to Italy before yoa
are absolutely rare of your dnraf^htiiiuuHlttp.**

In the year 1773, however, he went ofF for a
little journey. He had not seen his home,
Dantzic, for thirty years, and now he made up
his mind to revisit it, and to visit once more
ilk old mother. He wrote a diary of this trip,
which kept him away for nine weeks inttead of
the originally wtended two; it » almoit as
interesting as DOrer's journal <^ hit voyage to
the Lowlands. DOrer took his sketch-book along
with him : but Chodowiecki went a step further, he
actually illust-ited his diary. One hundred and
eight drawings, most of them carefully finished,
help to nake dear the important ej»aodes of his
trip better ^m any words can. Travelling in a
waggon or stage-coach did not agvae with Cho-
domecki, so he began the journey by buying a
nag. Trnvelling was, in his day, scarcely less
perilous than in DOrcr's time. As far as that
goes, we know how dangerous it was even forty-
two years later, also at the close of a great period
of warsi when after the battle <^ Waterloo

«8o STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Mmc. D'Arblay went in search of her wounded
hiubtnd, and dire neceauty forced her to make
nmndtboat joumeyi of doseens of leagues b
order to be moving at all. Chodoiriecki, too,
ku to tike special prrciotioiw at to tho rand la
chooses, and it is not always the short cut* wbUk
he deems advisable. It is from such diariw «
Mme. D'Arblay's and Chodowiecki's that we
obtain a most fascinating insight into the life
of M age whidi seems so little removed from
us in its philoaophy, its literature, itt art, yet
eo unthinkably distant ia its menntri and evcrf>
day habits. Often Chodowiccki finds no inn at
all, and it takes long persuasion before he can
secure some bread for his horse (other fodder
there is none) and a few crumbs for himself.
Upon the third night he put up at an inn in
* rillege called Massow. He lay down on the
flow wrapt in hia greatcoat, his fctfp«^ fyg
a pillow : there were no beds. Near Ima lif
a feverish, Polish beggar, on some few roilMa
In the middle of the night a military surgeon
and a tax-collector stormed in with three
muMcians. They began to dance and sing and
cut capers. Presently they began to worry
Chodowiecki, who had {n«taided to be asleep all
this tioie. It was only the landlady's interrMUflg

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 281

with the information that the traveller hailed
from Berlin which made them desist. This is
the kind of hotel accommodation one had to put
up with at wayside inns in 1773.

In Dantzic he fooad his mother hale and
heirtjr mm! kb Mten weH. lU had may vkits
to imIbb, nid many of the notaUe paopk m tlw
town to portray. His ptctnre of the town
shows us how very different a place the Dantzic
of 1773 must have been from the Dantzic of
to-day. The outward aspect of the streets has
altered comparatively little, but the population
leemt to have baaa radally quite dilfoaat.
Then it was in great part a SitLf peo|4e tliat
lived within it* walls. To-day the Polandert
certainly are very little noticeable, and the city
is quite German.

Shortly after his return to Berlin — the very
evening of his arrival a fire broke out in his
quarter oi die town, and, tirad aa he was, ha had
to turn oat, for he hekmgad to dM vohantary
fire brigade — he want off upmi another diort
trip, still upon the same good old horse. He
appraised a private gallery in Silesia, and from
there he rode to Dresden, which he reached upon
the 24th of October. Dantzic was one of the
Snt mercaacile towns in Germany, Dresden wn

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282 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

the centre of art — in those times. Both of them
were altogether out of comparison with the crude
Berlin in which he lived, lacking historical
tradition and artistic life I Chodowiecki reveUed
in the gallery at Dresden and in the society of
brother artists, above all of Graff, with whom he
had long been on the friendliest of terms, and
who for many years was a steady correspondent
of his. He then journeyed home via Leipsic.

Only three further trips, none of them as
imporunt as the one to Dantzic, interrupted the
monotony of his Berlin life. In July of the year
1780 he once more vinted Dantzic on account of
the death of his mother, settled her affiiirs then,
and took his sisters back with him to Bcriin, in
accordance with a promise which he had made to
his mother seven years before. In September-
October of the year 1781 he went to Hamburg
to catalogue a collection of fine prints belonging
to one Mr. Sillem, fw he was not <mly deemed a
fine artist but also a connoisseur of prints, and,
indeed, he himself had formed an important
collection.

This time the journey was undertaken on
hcvseback again, but not on his old one: he
had sold that after his return from Dresden.
In a letter to Graff he says: "I wanted to tnvd

DANIEL CHODOWmCKI 283

faster than bjr wdimry pott, to I engtged extra

post-horses, riding with a postilion, and yet it
took me three nights and two days to reach
Hambutg. On the way back I engaged courier-
horses, and we were two nights and a day and
a half under way."

The third tripwaa taken purely for pleature
in the compuaj of hts 9tm William, 1^ son-in-
law, and of the painter KrQger. Chodowiecki,
visiting once more Dresden, Leipsic, and Dessau,
again kept a detailed journal of events : this was
in the year 1789. He hunted up his good friends
GrafF and Zingg (the landscape etcher) at once,
and devoted much time to the gallery, the
muaoutt of antiques, &c The mummiea inter-
ested him particularly. Am<M^ the pictures the
Correggios engaged his attention most, then follow
the Bolognese pointers. But that was the general
taste of the times. A trip to KOnigsstein, which
was then still considered an inaccessible fortress,
furnished an opportunity for some Audnating
descripti<H?j. At Lapic it is old Oetcr, Goetiie'i
drawing-msster, who figures most praninently
in the diary ; at Dessau, Basedow, an important
work by whom Chodowiecki had illustrated.

During all these travels on horseback he
worked almost as industriously as at home in

284 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

his studio. He writes to say how, one dty,
this incessant application caused him the loss
of some of his front teeth. He was sketching,
holding his book in his left hand, his pencil in
his right, consequently being forced to take the
reins of his hone between his teeth. The koy
animal suddenly stumbled, and the unexpected
lurch made it pull heavily at the reins, which
tore a couple of Chodowiecki's teeth out.

Upon the ist of June 1785 Chodowiecki's wife
died. A few days later he writes to his friend :
"Your good wishes, my esteemed friend, for my
good, righteous, and lovable wife did not teach
their aim. She is no more; she has left me last
Wednesday, after an Ulness of dght days' dun-
tion. I cannot weep any more; but my heart
continues to bleed. She was so altogether my
friend, ever wanting to help, full of patience for
my ftults, joyous when I was glad ; my loss is
irreparable." The sudden death w^s particularly
distressing, since the day had been set a«d» for
the marriage of his second daughter. It had to
be postponed ; but the ceremony took place, like
that of her elder sister two years before, in the
open. Chodowiecki wrote about it to Graff:
" Last week I married my eldest daughter to a
French preacher in Bourg, Monsieur Papin. The

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 285

ceremony took place in my Httle gtrden (Cho-
dowiecki lived in Behrenstrasse : there are no
gardens to be found in that quarter to-day!)
beneath the open sky and the shade of two beau-
tiful pear-trees which were in blossom still. Some
ordiodoK people took exception to this ; still, it
all looked very pietureaque and chirming."

Age was now comii^ up<m Chodowiecki. He
writes to Graff: "Truly I have worked all my
life like a horse, and not like a lazy one." He
began to turn ill of a swelling in the legs ; yet
this did not keep him from work. He had a
table arranged in luch a manner that he could
work even when in bed. The mmnent hn health
improved a fait he wrote: "Everything ia all
right again, and, always excepting my 1^, I
feel very well, enjoy the best of appetites, and
always take a piece of rye bread along from
breakfast to eat in case dinner should be behind
time for some reason or other, and I eat another
piece at me o'clock in the night when I ceaae
working, Mid thai I go to rest with no lesa appfr*
titt than before, and I often thi^ that I shall go
to my last rest just as gladly when it pleases our
Lord to call me, and in five minutes I am asleep.
I tie a string to my thumb from the alarm clock
so as to be sure to awake at seven, and then I sit

286 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

down to work. Sometimes pleasant, sometimes
unpleasant and uninteresting visitors turn up. who
thortea my days, shon enough of themselves.
But I try to have patience with them all, and try
in the evening to make good the losses I may
have sustained during the day. Thus joys and
griefs alternate ; but, after all, the joys are in the
majority, only grief strikes deeper at the time."
Sometimes he slept sit'tng up amid bolsters and
cushions in order to economise the time which
the making of his toilet, adjusting of his wig,
&€., would take him next morning.

It was not only industry but also expedition
which characterised his method of work. One
day he was in a large company of merry folk,
one of whom produced a drawing which he had
sketched of a soldiers* brawl in the Behren
Street. >^ithou . attracting attention Chodowiecki
disappewed with the sketch for barely more than
a few nunutes. When he returned he showed
the stupefied compar y a dry-point plate which
he had quickly made after the drawmg, along
with a few finished proofs. Prints of this plate
have been preserved, and it is catalogued as
number 750 in the "osuvre" of Chodowiecki
by Engelmann.
During the kst years of his life our artist's

DAMEL CHODOWIECKI 287

health was considerably improved, and he was
honoured to the degree of being appointed Pre-
sident of the Berlin Academy upon the deaJi of
his friend Rode, which took place in 1797. In
the succeeding year he was elected a correspond-
ing member by the Academy of Siena. His
honours dkl not afiect his modesty. As early as
the year 1767 he had been interested in the welfare
of the Berlin academy, and kept it in view even
at times when the actual doings of that establish-
ment were not at all in accordance with his own
ideas. For many years he had officiated as its
secretary, and as such was respniuble for an
innovatiaa, namely, the holding of annual public
exhibitions. It was witlun the walls <^ the
academy that he suffered a slight stroke in
February of the year 1 800. Exactly a year later,
on the 27th day of February 1801, he expired.

His reputation had become fairly international.
He had often been compared to Hogarth, a
comparison which much dbpleased him, and
which, to be true, was likely to lead to an unjust
appreciation of both mastm. There was some
similarity, however, in the treatment both re-
ceived at the hands of their contemporaries.
Books were written as a running commentary
upon the series of Hogarth prints. The same

288 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

holds true of Chodowiecki's series. Lichtenberg,
the German " explainer " of Hogarth, discoursed
at length upon the " philosophy " of Chodowiedd,
and to did the author lunme. Chodowiecki took
criticism in good part, and wrote about Hmme:
" I shall consider his strictures, and will be quite
just to the author if ever I find his criticism
worthy of notice. His attention to so much detail
in my works will induce me to become, myself,
more careful with regard to it."

Of enthunatdc contemporary praise, the foUoir-
ing is a fur specimen furmshed by the famous
Lavater: "I consider Chodowiecki's /idiemc A
Culas to be one of the most masterly, natuiftl,
and powerful pieces which I have ever seen in my
life ! How much all-pervading veracity ! How
much naturalness! How fine the composition!
How much vigour imhout asperity ! how much
-"' ^ : unthout ovcrwwk ! how fVdl of mean-

, whole as well as every part ! how great
the . tMi.rast of characters, and how harmonious
and simple the design ! and ever and always
truth, and always Nature, and such Truth, such
Nature, that one would never dream of thinking
that the occurrence, the composition, any single
person or the tightest detail were a matter
imagination! Notlung has been exa^eratedl

mi

DANIEL CHODOWIECKI 289
All is Poetry and not the sembknce of Poetry I
One forgets the picture, and one sees— and does
not see— one is there— in the prison of suflfering
innocence!" &c. The extravagance of such
praise is symptomatic of the eighteenth century.
But we can adduce « eulogium, which counts for
more because of its sober tone, and because of its
author— Goethe. NicoU had written • foolish
pamphlet directed against Goethe's "Werth^,**
for which Chodowiecki had, upon order, etched
a frontispiece. Goethe writes in fFahrheii und
DicAtUMg: "The extremely delicate vignette by
Chodowiecki gave me much pleasure; an artist
v*m^Islm^Mndt^m0Mmv, I cut it out
of the book and pkeed it tmoagat my favourite
I»ints."

T

CHAPTER XI

ANTON GRAFF

"I WAS bom on the i8th of November in the
year 1736 at Wintcrthur (in Switzerland)," wrote
Anton Gtzff in a short autobiography, which has
been preserved at Dresden in a copy transcribed
by the painter's son. " My father was a pewtera,
and I was ocpected to adopt his calling. How^
ever, the del^ht i^ch I h$d aimjt from duld-
hood up taken in pictures awakened in me the
longing and wish to become a painter." From a
contemporary, whose name was Heid^ger, we
learn that GrafF was not a good scholar. " Every
other thing interested him more than the arts of
reading and writing: eftn the aevereit caning
and the toughest pullii^ of hia hair bjr the
schoolmaster produced no other result than
rendering the pupil bald at die exfwmtion of a
few weeks, so that he hid to cover his pate with
a wig, which furnished the other schoolboys some-
thing to play with. During lessons he used to
draw and dcetch. S' ice, however, he durtt not

ANTON GRAFF 291

make ute of the fwper desdaed for the practice

of penm«; ?hip, he had to wwk upon htn onm
leather breeches. This proved a happy Mr»-
tion, without which Graff no doubt would have
been turned into a preacher or something of this
sort, in spite of his objections to reading and
writing. For when the Mud breeches were once
covered with pictures in the front uid tt the
sides, hn genius perforce appeared {dain to ererjr
one's eye.

" My father," continued Graff, " howevw, was
not at all willing that I should become an artist,
until one day the pastor (Wirz) at Rickenbach
(who himself drew and punted a little) persuaded
him to acquksoe and to pbce young Anton for
three years under a punter called Schellenfaerg.**
The apprenticeship was conducted strictly on the
lines of the house and sign painter business, so
that in case Anton did not realise the expectations
set upon him after all, he < juld at I^Mt ea n a
living by following the meaner pursuits Jie
proftsrion. His progress was signal, and ht soon
became Schdtenbeig's favooritt, who kid «» «»-
company his master in all lus Iktle «qptd ^
" Yet his life at that time served very Ht
further the artist in him. He had to g. i
several pots of jngment a day, to dean mm

2g2 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

brushes, and to pain*, in the groundwork of a
few pictures." At the end of his first year he
had to decide which branch of painting— land-
scape or portrait alone were open to choice — he
intaidcd adopting. From purely buwiest
sidentiotis he selerted portnut paindi^, for he
knew that even a ndscapist of such good stand-
ing as Aberli frequently was compelled to fall
back upon portraiture in order to make both
ends meet.

" At the expiration of my apprenticeship I had
to lode out for myself. It wm not an easy thing
to find a master ndio would take me as an asstttut,

and who was at once so situated and himself of
sufficient abilities to render it likely that I ?ould
profit by my staying with him. Schellenberg had
written about me to John Jacob Haid of Augsburg,
but the reply that came was to the eflfect that he
coukl not secure a position of any kind for me.
If I wanted to chance it and come upon my own
rnks, he wouki help me with advice and good-will
as much as he was able to. On t strengt/i of
this promise I went ?n June 1756 from Winterthur
to Augsburg, where I arrived upon the 17th of
the month. Haid duly and liberally kept his
promise. He found lodgings and a boarding-
place for me, and also work to do, so that I spent

ANTON GRAFF

my time advantageously until the yew 1757.
Towards the end of this year I was accepted as
assistant by Schneider, court-painter at Ansbach,
in consequence of Haid's recommendation. For
I WM farced to le«ve Augsburg, because several
punten oOk'^ Hud to account for aiding me,
who there'^ re iged to aecttre ofdart and work
which 01 would have fallen to them.

Schneider was a native of Geislingen, nzir Ulm,
practised for some time in Ratisbon, Ulm, and
the adjacent districts, until he was appointed
court-painter at Ansbach. Hii portraits weren't
half bad, hastily executed indeed, but very like.
Snce he painted very quickly, and was alao cheap,
he got many orders at tins court, and ittd to
keep assistants. I was of a good deal of use to
him, and had to make copies and other unimport-
ant things, from which I could learn just nothing
at all. This was the time of the Seven Years'
War, when everybody wanted to own a portrait
of the King of Prussia (Frederick the Great).
The King's sister, the Dowager Maiggravine of
Ansbach, possessed a portrait of the King, which
had been painted at Berlin. This picture I had
to copy time and again, and finally I managed to
do one copy a day. This, indeed, gave me no
help towards improving my own knowledge and

294 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

proficiency in painting. Painting nothing but
poor copies is not the right way. I was fully
aware of that, and would not have stayed there
so long if the mumer of Ihring in tUs ettel^^
ment had not pleased me so well. Schndder and
his Aunily were pleasant people, and he earned
a lot of money. Notwithstandbg he fell into
debt, so that he died in prison."

Heidegger again goes more into detail about
the portrait copies. He says: "Probably he
would have had to leave Ansbach after a not
much longer space of time than Augsburg, had
not the wife of the court-punter favoured lum
because of his good looks and of his being a native
of Switzerland. Upon his demand for work this
lady demanded whether he was industrious. His
natural answer was yes, and he was at once put to
the test. He was led to the painting-room, given
palette and brushes, and pteced before the easel
m order to copy a portrait of the King of Phum ;
and the hdy redred. The test wa» not an easy
one, but within two days his copy was finished.
And so he was given the same task, to be repeated
for months. At first the lady still controlled him
from time to time. She would listen at the key*
hole, then run to her husband and say, *Tlw
Swiss is painting so hard that the eaael shakei.*

ANTON GRAFF ^95

Thus GraiF learned to work expeditiously, earned
money for himself and hb master, and won the
fnendsUp of the kdy Moddhet daughters, wko
were amiaUe enough."

At Ansbach Graff for the first time saw some
good work by masters of a high rank. The palace
there contained portraits by Kupetzky and by
Rigaud, which he studied and admired. Of
Kupetzky he wrote a few years later upon sedng
some family pieces by him at Bayreoth, that
*' Nature heradf rules there. It is not as if tiiey
had been painted, it is life itself: til other
paintings which one sees after them appear to be
flat and shallow." In Rigaud's work he admired
the brilliant execution of the accessories, and the
ideal that he had in mind at the dme was a com-
bination of tht several excellencies of these two
portrait patnMts*

Graff was not obliged to aUde with the
Schneiders until the final crash came. " After a
year and a half had passed Haid wrote to me
that I might return to Augsbui^ if I liked, and
could work there undisturbed, because the painters
who had objected to me had in the meandme
(tied. So I w«it back to Ai^isburg in Fdmiary
1759, and Ihad gave me board and lodging in
hia own home. The first portrait I painted after

296 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

my return was that of Bause, a native of H&lle,
who had come to Augsburg for a brief period <i£
time to study under an engraver there. Fmn

now on came an uninterrupted series of orders
for portraits." Heidegger puts it thus : *' Short
and tall, fat and lean patricians, senators, pastors,
wives and daughters — ^ail wanted their portnuts
painted by Graff."

The next nx years were spent in quiet retire-
ment " within the four walls of a busy punter's
studio," and the only occurrences of interest were
the visits of a few friends who had acquired fame,
and three short journeys. The first of these,
carried out in the year 1763, took him in company
w.th his friend Haid to Munich, where he saw
for the first time in his lift a reaily important
gallery, that at Schleissheim, and the jnctures in
the palace at Mumch. The local painter <^ im-
portance in that day was Georges Desmar^s, whose
reputation suffered the ups and downs of so many
artists of the eighteenth century. During his life-
time he was praised beyond measure. For a full
century he fell into absolute neglect. The ten-
dency to re-establish the punters round about
the year 1800, which led to the fine centenary
exhibitions all over Germany irithin the put
decade, has direct«l renewed attoiticm to

ANTON GRAFF 297

Desmartes' merits, and he has been reinstalled
in the estimation of connoisseurs as a painter of
no mean qualifications. It u not certun whether
Graff came into personal contact with lum. But
the man's work impressed Graff to such a degree
that it caused him to change his style, as appears
from the circumstance that he was occasionally
referred to as a pupil of Desmar6es.

"During March 1764 Profeaaot Sulzer called
upon me on his journey from Berlin to Switzer-
land. Four youi^ men accompanied him* all of
whom became famous in time — Lavater, Hess,
Fuessli, and Itzeler of Schaffhausen. During
their brief sojourn at Augsburg I had the pleasure
of being with them all the time, and of doing the
honours of the place. Sulzer invited me to visit
him at Berlin. I had not the faintest preaenti-
ment at the time that I should become his son-
in^aw one day. This same year, in August, I
v.'ent to Ratisbon, where I painted very many por-
traits in oil, but on vellum. It was the custom of
the day for members of the Church and of the
Municipal Council to have their portraits painted
in a book oi moderate size. But I also did some
iMTger work for the establtshm/Mits of the Swedish,
Russian, and Frusnan ambassadm. I retunwd to
Augsburg in February 1765, where I som became

298 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

acquainted with a certain Captain Heidegger, who
WIS a native of Sintzerland, and the brothsr-in-
law <^ &iIomon Gessner. Hddegger had ueoi
in Dresden, where he had fiillen in, among others,

with Herr von Hagedom, the Director of the
Academy of Fine Arts recently established in this
town. On his return to Switzerland he passed
through Augsburg, and upon learning that I, a
portrait painter and compafiot, lived in the city,
decided to lode me up. He told me that
Hagednn was looking about for a poitnut
painter (as a member for the Academy), and that
he would write to him proposing me for the
position. But I begged him not to do so, as i
mistrusted my own capacities, and did not feel
myself able to fill so important a place.

** In the coarse of this same year I made a trip
to Winterthnr, which I hadn't seen for nine years.
My intention waa to pay my natal dty only a
sh«rt visit and then return to Augsburg, where
I wanted to settle down definitely. At Winter-
thur I painted the portrait of the old mayor
Hegner for the town libnry. Then 1 went vo
Zarich to look up Captain Heidegger, who in-
troduced me to the house of lus brother^^n-law
Gessner, where I was received with great kindness.
Heid^ger told me that h« had writtoi to von

ANTON GRAFF 299

Hagedorn, and had recommended me to him.
Since, however, I did not believe that anything
would come of this, I left Zttrich for Basle,
intendii^r to vint my old ftiend Qimtian von
Mechel (whote portrait I had painted in 1756
at Augsburg), but did not find him at home.
After very short sojourn at this place I returned
to Winterthur, where letters from Heidegger and
Ha'» dc-n were awaiting me. Hagedorn wrote
that Heidegger had given him an excellent
account of me, and he ihan£oee proposed that I
should caeat to Dnader. I was to reodve one
hundred thaler for journey expenses, and after
my arrival was to pwnt a portrait on trial, for
which I was to receive fifty thaler. If my work
met with approval, I would be ofiFered an annual
salary of four hundred thaler ; if not, the refund*
ing of my expenses and the payment for the
portratt, as stated above, would be the alternative.

**I now went back to Zttrich to take counsel
v/hat I should do. Everybody advised me to go
to Dresden at once. But I lacked experience and
self-confidence : I had great misgivings as to a
happy issue of the project, and feared lest atten-
tion to it T 'd spml my chances at Augsburg.
I had jttst ^.^died a self-pcwtrait, which I had
destined for the pastor at Rickenbach as a token

300 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

of gratitttde for his intervention with my father,
to which ftlcme I owed the fkct that I had beea
allowed to turn punter. This telf-portratt was

still in my possession : I was adi^sed to send it
to Dresden, which I did. Pending the reply, I
remained with Salomon Gessner at Zttrich, spend-
ing happy days in his house, also painting several
portraits." The most successful among these were
one of Gessner himself, which seems to have been
lost, of which we possess, however, a good engniT-
ing by Bauae, and <me of the punter John Caspar
Fuessli, no traces of which have been found nnce
the year 1850.

It was Heidegger again who had forwarded
Graft's self-portrait to Hagedorn, reniarking in
an accompanying lettw: "Since the time in
which this p<utnut was painted, the painter, by
the way, has much improved upon his manner,
and adopted a much liveUer style of coloration.
Should one thing or another still be found at
fault, I know for certain that the artist, guided
by the criticism of connoisseurs, will improve \r.
very little time." The portrait, a three-quurter
length, seated befm an easel, now hangs in the
Dresden Gallery (No. 2166 of the catalogue),
and met with uncommon approbation on the part
of the general critics, of Hagedorn, and of the

ANTON GRAFF 301

Administrator Prince Xaver. GrafF accordingly
receind the appointment. He was appointed
punter-inHmliinry with a adary <^ four hundred
thakr from the ist of October 1765. (This
was an especial favour, so as to render the Ion of
his first month's salary, which had to be given up
to the poor, less noticeable : Graff was not ex-
pected to enter upon his duties before April
1766.) He was to receive one hundred thaler
expenses for the journey (ten thaler above this
sum were actually paid). Every p(Mtrait ovw
and above die one per year that he had to paint
for the court gratis was to be paid for at the
rate of fifty thaler for a half length without hands
or with one hand, one hundred thaler for such
with two hands, and a more liberal amount for
thrcfr-quarter lengths, whole lengths life-size, and
p<Mrtnuts with dabotate accessories, highly decor-
ated oourt coetames» &c. Beaida the annual
gratis portrut already meuvioned, he was bound
to donate one potrait as a reception piece upon
his being made a member of the Academy, to
offer gratis instruction annually to at least one
assistant who had been previously instructed in
the preparatory schools, and to arrive as soon as
poanble in Mardi or April, and to pnmiise ftith-
fully to pomote the intoests <^ the Fine AtU in

302 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

Saxony to the very best of his ability. " So," says
Graff, " I arrived in Dresden on the 7th of April
1765. From now on good luck ever ftttendfid
me, and I had to punt very many portruts.**

At the time of his arrival, however, he felt
rather unhappy, as one always is apt to feel when
one comes into altogether strange surroundings.
His inexperience and indecision surprised Hage-
dorn, and it took him a long time before he
found lodgings. He settled finally in » houK
in the centre of the town, on the south
side of the marketplace (Altmarkt, No. 12
to-day).

Here he lived almost to the end of his days.
Soon his countryman, Adriiin Zingg, the land-
scapist and etcher, was called to Dresden, and
from that time on Graff b^an to feel more com*
fortaUe. Hagedom returned very favourable
reports about his woric to Prince Xaver, and also
wrote about him in very complimentary terms to
the famous Johann George Wille, line-engraver
in Paris. Graff rapidly became the fmvourite
portrait artist of the town.

In the year 1769 he made an excursion to
Leipsic, and here he secured the patronage of
Phil. Erasmus Reich. Reich was wealthy, and
one of the kading publishers of the great book

ANTON GRAFF 303

centre. His was one of the houses which Goethe
had frequented as a student, and a place where
the literary and intellectual life of Leipnc met.
Rach entertained the idea of ha^ong a portnut
gallery of all the prominent people who frequented
hb house. He entrusted the execution of the
portraits to Graff : this interesting gallery is still
to be seen at the library of the Leipsic University,
to which it was presented by Reich's widow in
1 809, the year of the celebration of this univer-
sity's fourth centenary.

Rnch w«ited to have, berides the local and
other Saxon celebrities, portraits of Spalding,
Ramler, Moses Mendelssohn, and Sulzer in his
gallery. So he sent Graff in the spring of the
year 1771 to Berlin to paint these pictures.
Here Graff became acquamted with Sulzer's eldest
daughter, and fell in love v^th the girL Sulzer
was glad to bestow her upmi lum, **leM,** he
wrote, **on account <^ the ardat*a merttt, though
they had guMd for him the honour of bcii^ a
Saxon court-punter, but because we discovered
his dispositio:! to be as clear and pure as r beauti-
ful day in spring." Auguste was not yet seven-
teen years old when the couple was married on
the i6th of October 1771.

What with lua ordera at home, those atLeipnc,

304 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

and those which he obtained through the influence
of hb ftther-m-tew. at Bcrfin, GtaflTt afatit wen
floiimlung. ** Sulxcr tntrodaeed me at ooort and
among the nobiHty, in ccmsequence of wluch I
had much work to do. In the year 1777 I
painted Prince Henry (Frederick the Great's
brother) at Rheinsberg. I owe very much to
Berlin." Twice indeed he was on the pcMnt of
settling there, first in 1774, when for some un-
known reasmi he wm (^aatisfied with the way he
had been treated at Dresden; dien ugm in I7t8,
when he was offered a position and membership
of the Berlin Academy (in which his intimate
friend Chodowiecki filled the post of secretary)
with an annual salary of twelve hundred thaler.
GraflF hesitated to accept the ofFi^r, partly
because he had be«HM atuchcd to E^readen,
where he had fared so well for the past twenty
years, partly from a feeling of gratitude, but
probably most because of his disposition which
inclined him towards letting good alone and not
venturing on new, unknown ground. The Berlin
offer served him a good turn, however, in so far
as he conquered hb modesty and asked ftr a
greater salary at hcmie. Tina waa readily granted :
he received a full professivship and seven hundred
and fifty thaler in all, in lieu of the four hundred

ANTON GRAFF 305

widi wlddi he had remained content for upwardt

of twenty yean. He also raised hit prices, from

thirty thaler fc a portrait without hands, to fifty

thaler. The steady run of h» everyday 1^

wu broken by journey* to Swiuwlwd in tht

sttflUMT of the yiBMt 1781, tyM* tad 1796;

The fttquMi aMll CBurnom to BerHn, Leipait*

OvlaM tK., miy be looked upon aa belonging

to his common routine. Durl last-named

years he had copied a nrr ' pictures in the

Dresden Gallery for the E> .eaa of Rusna, who

rewarded him handsomely.

Gn^ had, by the dme the aev eentnry bid

coflii9»tanMdbito *«a ktadly^iapoMd, hriglitold

gendeMUk The powder on his hair kept one

from diioofcring whether it was aheady grey

or perhaps white. Although he wore gUissea,

there was still much fire in his eye. He wore a

brown nlk frockcoat with large steel buttona,

Brussels hu» on hb abtrt and at the tatk, a

ilowcnd btuo mtcoit, and aeemed to ibacf ^

comptnneaia which were paid hun on the aciie of

his neatncaa of dicia. His economy was gmt.

Another acquaintance reports : " He lived in a

single, large room, lighted by two windows, on

the Altmarkt. A long screen divided tlus room

lengthwise: one of the halves thus form^ he used

u

3o6 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

M a ttudio. the other was used by the family "
(there were several duldren !) ; " it was living-,
dining-, and bed-room, all in one. Sometimes it
had to serve professional purposes even. GraiF
always ground his own colours, and this he did
in the living-room." His economy extended
only to the regulation of lua domestic estabHdip
ment. He was by no meam paruuKMiioua, and
often lent a helping hand to poor ardste. Yet
at his death his fortune amounted to aometMag
like forty thousand thaler.

Unfortunately the last years of the poor old
man's life were unhappy. He had to undergo an
operation for cataract in 1803. He could paint
for some time after, yet his eyesight fuled steadily,
and grew to be very bad in the course of his laat
visit to Winterthur, which took place in the end
of 1810 and beginning of 181 1. Within a year
of his return to Dresden he lost his wife.

The troublesome Napoleonic period came on, so
disastrous for Saxony, such a period of disquiet
for Dresden. The military phase of life Ivoke in
upon Graff's old age, and ktpt him in constant
w(»ry uui unrest. He wrote to a friend, **I
hav«i*t sent a word for about six months, because
one can neither write nor travel. Our condition
is lamentable ; nothing but soldiery, constant

ANTON GRAFF 30?

alarms and fears, with the outlook of loMng
one's all. For the matter of a year now, my
dear friend, I am an unhappy old man. If I
saw my way towards reaching Switzerland, I
would risk the journey in spite of my old age.
I can't continue life much lot^ in tfaeee tt»-
quiet times.** Fuially he is even driven out of
lus honw, since soldiers and invalids are quartered
in the houses. He removes to the house of his
daughter. Within a fortnight he fell into a sort
of typhoid fever, which brought about his death
at the end of twelve days, on the 22nd of June
1813.

GraflF kept a s(»^ of wcuiting (Uary, in which he
entered all his portnuts. One of his biographers,
U. Hegner, gleaned therefrom that during the
years before settling at Dresden he had executed
297, during the remainder of his career 943 paint-
ings and 415 replicas or copies. Besides this
work in oils, his drawings, notably 322 nlvor
points, count for much. His work is to be
met with in almost all German public galleries,
the principal collations naturally faeit^ housed at
Winterthur, Dresden, and Leipsic.

Besides his fine draughtsmanship, and his faculty
of embodying the inner life of his atter in the
presentment of his outer features, GraflTs great

3o8 STORIES OF GERMAN ARTISTS

merit was the sobriety and strughtforwardmiB
of his conception. He relinquished all pose:
he did away with the habit of painting everyday
folk as if they were heroes or heroines, a practice
very common at the time when he commenced
hk ctfcer. He does not even try to mdu Aem
look u if they •* had their Sunday cbtfaei or."
Jn. edditaoa to ttt artistic qualities, nAansk alinip
GfaflTs work as that of the portrait painter who was
unquestionably first in the whole of Germany of his
times, this same series of portraits is full of in-
terest to us, because it furnishes us with an icono*
graphy of the world of letters during the last
qttarttr of the oghteei^th century^

APPENDIX

The AutktrMts tiUi0ff»sUi taek Ckafkr an tkmfiwm
whom tht major part of Us eotUtHts mn drawn

I. School of G>lofDe

II. Scbongum . .
III. Diiier ....

IV. Burgkmair .
„ B«ldui%

,, Griinewald

V. Altdorfer .
„ The Bduuns
„ Pencz . .
VI. The Cranachs

VII. The Holbdiu .

VIII. EUheimer . .
IX. Mengi • . .

X. Chodowiocki .

XI. Gnff ....

. Woermann, Aldenhoven,
Merlo • Flrmenich-Richaitz,
Escherich.

. Sandrart, Woltmann ("El-
sass"), Woermann.

. Sandnrt, Diirei'a MSS. (ed.
Lange & Fuhse), Reick.

. Sandrart, Eisenouum.

. Sandrart, FtiedUoder (AS^.
Ltxihon).

. Sandrart, Niedermeyer, A.
Sdunid, Eisennami, Httyi-
mani("Pan").

. Sandrart, FriedUnder.

. Sandrart, Theo. Koldc

. Sandrart, Kurzwelly.

. Sandrart, Woermann ("Cnn-
ach Exhibition Catal(^e ").

. Sandrart, Woltmann, Sprin-
ger, Woemumn.

. Sandrart.

. Bianconi, J. E. W. Miiller:
die "Pnnge Notes."

. Engelmann, F. Meyer, von
Oettingen, Kaemmerer.

. Mother, Vo|d.

V a

INDEX

Abondio, Alexander, 139
Aegidius, Peter, 198
Albani, CardiDsd, 349
Albredit, Duke, of Prussia, 147
Aldegrever, Heinrich, 137
Alexander VI., Pope, 89
Allegri, sti Correggio
Ahdorfer, Albrecht, 133-138
Altdorfer, Erbard, 135
Amerigbi, ut Caravaggio
Andrea d'Angeli, 109
Anne of Cieves, 005
Annibali, Domenico, 326-336, 241
Apellet, 108, 109, 358
d'Arblay, Madame, aSo
Arcbinto, Cardinal, aaB. 943. 344.
346, «S3

Arundel, tile Earl of, vj% 180, il4.

186

Augustas IL, King of Poland, 3ao
Augustus III., King of Poland, 334-
343,348

Axarra, the Cavaliere, 355, 359, 364

Baldung, Hans, 99, 107, 117-133,
197

Bamberg , tbe Bishop of , 89, 90,91 ,94

Barbarj, lacopo de', 70, 83

Basedow, J. B., 383

Battoni, Pompeo, 367

Bearde, Richard, 304

Becker, Councilk)r, 375

Behaim, Loiens, 89

Behams, the, 136. IS*-M4> >4l>SW>

I50-'S8
Bellini, Gian, 70, 109
Benedict XIV., Pope, 243, 346,

•47. M

Bianconi, 319
Bink, Jacob, 141
Bodenstein, st* Carlstadt
Boleyn, Anne, 201
Bonisius, James, 95
Borbonius, Nicholas, 183
Bormann, Charlotte, 231, 333
Bouts, Dirk, 39

Braschi, Monsignore Giovanni, 353
Braun, Georg, 14
Brengbier, Barbara, 161
Brllhl, Count, 331, ^33
Bruyn, Barthel, 33, 36-#
Bullinger, A., 303
Buonarroti, set Michelangelo
BurgkBMir, Hbm, 43> i*"-"?. 19"

CAI.AS, Jean, 273

Canierarius, 109

Campagnola, D., 110

Cangiaso, Luca, 351

Caravaggio, M. A., t83

Carlos III., King of Spain, 249,

350, 351, 353, 355, 356
Carlstadt, Andreas R., 149
Carmona, Manuel S., a6i
Carroontelle, L. C. de, 373
Carracci, the, 333, ato, 367
Caetani, Don Onorato, 36a
Charles V., the Bnq^enr, M, 9*^

97, i6i, 163
Chiaveri, Gaetano, 337
Chodowiecki, Daniel, .';68-a89
ChoCard, P. P., 377
Christina, Duchess of Milan, 303
Christopliir, Murgtmv* of Bailcn,

130

CimabM, flIWBll, It «

312

INDEX

dement XIII., Pope, 047, 353,
954

Cochin, C. N., 377
Ctrfofne, the Saiwol of, a. 4-38
Coitdiri, Ascanio, 41, 43
Corelli, Arcangelo, 365
Correggio, Antonio da, 130, 333,

•34. ass

Corvi, Dofnenioo, 967

Cimnadi, John, 163

Cruadi, Lokat, the Elder, 159-

163, 164, i6s, 197
Cfsnscb, Lttkat, Uw Younger, 160,

DANTBAUghi«ri,t,a66
David, G«rhard, 31
DdafoM, J. B.. ^73
Denk, JoImuiii, 150, 157
DeMwuta. Oeoi|«, a;6, 097
DeTiMt, Chevalier, a6s
Dooauar, J., 131
Dtt-Faf, Mr., ax I
Dtoer. Agnes, 56-59, 71, 74, 75,
9».9«

INrar, Albraeht. tht Alitor, jt
DSrar, Alfaradit. 3, 4. 14, 15, 16,
33. 40> 49< S*-m, 113, iiS, lao,
ia4, ta6. 130, 136, 146. 159, 113,
197, ai«, a79
DOrar, An^iw wtd Hana, 59

Edklsheim, Baron, 355
Elsheimer, Adam,
Eisen, Charlea, 377
Erasmua, Secretary, 95
Eraimni of Rotterdam. 93, 96, 99,
io«, 171, 179, its, «97. 19». «>
Ewald, S7«

Fischer, SeboM, 93

Frederidc the Great, the Emperor,

869. 874. 375. »93
Fcederidt the Wiie, the Eiactor,

77. 78. i6i
Fiqr, Hana, 56
FtHMU, J. H., 997

Gblrnius, 14

Gerung, M., 139

Gessner, Salomon, 398, 300

Giotto di Bondonc, i

Giulio de' Gianuzii (Giulio Ro>

mano), 147
Goethe, J. W. von, 389
Gouda (Goudt), Jonclcheer, 313
Graff, Anton, 383, 384, 385, 390-308
Gravelot, Hubert, 377
Greiffenberger, 149
Ureuie, J. B., 973
Grimaldi, Prince, ast
Grttoewald, Hana, 118, xaS
Grflnewald.Matlfamus, ti8, 133-139
Gma, Anion, j6
Guaiai, Marpret, 936
Onarini, Father, tat, mg, 199, 434
Owahhar, R., 993

H AGEDOKN, J. L. von, 998, 899, JOO

Haid, John Jacob, 370, 999, 993,

Basse, John Adolph, 336
Hegner, U., 307

Heidegger, Captain, 390, 994, 996,

398, 399, 300
Heller, Jacob, 77-88, 197
Henry VIII., lUag, I71-t]f«, an,

303, 305

Henry, Prince(Fredericklh9aiwt'a

brother), 304
Berlin, Margaret, 1x9
Hess, Jerome, 397
Hogarth, William, 387
Holbein, Bans, the Elder, x6B, 169,

188-194

Holbein, Hans, the Younfer, aa,

38, 167-305, 3X6
Holbein. Sigmund, 168
Hollar, Wenceslaui, tCj
Holper, Jerome, 59
Howard. CadMciBt. avs

ITZBLU, J., 997

jACoro M PeotonM, 109
Jofaiii, Bmwd. 19B

INDEX

MariaHiB, Dakaaf BBtaili^ aly

Jota.iteBlaoMr.iii

MaatafllaB, tfaa ITimif di. ^» H.

Jota. Lcf«. of Mmmi, Mf

16^ 47. M. MS, iiSb Ii4t ni» ifi

John ftmimUK BmMi

MakMkttaii. Mf

i«S

Mwigt. AatOM Baytaalt 8i^4%

koKim. AathMy, St

Rolwgir, Hmm, t^t

Iteian, Matthaar, U4

IM.QMMll,«

Marteai. Abaakaasi aaf

Kif. UiBM. t4y-M». iSS

4a, lea^ aa(, a^r

Kaylifcy, |.iH

Middh RUoa. tlM Ichoal «r. 4

Mitasr. tk4

More, 84r TkasMi tfia t79» ifc

aoo, aox

Moreau, Jean Miehd, wn

Lattuiio, OboM, an

MOnser, Thomas, 149

lAWMir, JotaM iCt asttk tft, aa7

Napl£s, the Ktaig and Qaan af.

U Bton, Mktaa rtl. iM

UBraatCagi

a4«. ass

LMoardo d« ViMi, ift

Nauburg, Prinoe, 139, 141

ImOng, O. B., a7«

NeudOrffer, Hans, t^

Nioalai. C P.. "89

NwaMbaiy t tbaflaUMt a^ ^

31. 3»

Lomano, P., 065

Obsu, Adaai F., al3

Laateid, LaailMn, 43

Ottander, Andreas, tsa

LtiHert, John, iti

Pallavicihi, cardinal, ais

Luu^BmaaMM, 19*

Papin, M., al4

Pater, J. B. J., 372

Mamamv, itaANMachM

■(Oov-

Puenier, Joikchim, 9a

•mew of tht LottMri

»•). 94.

Pelerin, Jean, 117

lOI

Pembroke, die Barl of, t78, iM

Marillior, C.r.,fr

Penes, George, 141, S4«M^ I4f.

MwiM, AatJbamf, mn

ISO. «M ■ '

MuqMN. MdMrofBiehal

Itdt,xte

Perugino, Pielfo, yf

Master '* E S," the, 47

Pimias, Jan, tyj

Master of St. Bartholomew, the, 3,

Pirkheimer, Philipp, 51

33-36

Pirkheiaiar, WHbalt. fHH^ ^

Master of the Holy Kinship, the.

7S. »9. «<f '

3«-33. 34

Pius VI., Pope, as7

Masterof th« Uh afttaa Vfacin,

PltBMkfckk. 91

3, M, as. a4, •6t ay-sa

Plainer, Haaa, 149 • ; -f-

Matsi)s, Qoenttai. 9a. ig>

Prevost. Jan, 99

Matthaus of AaMMb

Orttnamld)

QOAOT TOB Kinckribach, 15

3>4

INDEX

Raimondi, Marc Alcwh, M, tie,

>39. >44. 177
Raphael, Santi, 40, 97, no, 139,

141, 178, 198, ai6, aa4, 134, 135,

244 «67
Reich, Phil. ErMmos, 30*, 303
Rembnuidl, van RJki H.,93
Rani, Otiido, ajs
Rhenanus, Beatus, 197
Rifaod, H., 395
Riminaldi, Cardinal, 964
Rode, B., 971, aTa
Rosa, Salvatore, a6a
Rubeni, P. P., i6a, ita
Rudolf II. , the Bn^KOr, 75, 8a
ROM. L., 43

Wiwnjw, Kaplwrt, 116

arianMi,Ca,a96

Saadtart, JomMm, 114. «ty, 118,

187. n». (3«, MS* M>t tt4.

>94. 199.

SaMi, m Raphatl; M SacM,

1, Afatafaam, laj, uf
I. J. R., a9i
ScUldkm, K., Si.

Uoahard, an. 994

r, ManiB. 4< 3

So> 5S> te> <•»
Sdia, « iaiMri fa
Seymour, Jaaa, •••
Silvcitrs, L. d% «3, ^
Solms, Cooatea. •75
SpabUin. Geoci, S7, 88, m6
Stecher, BrntlSmA^ft
Slimmer, T., 183
Stock, A., 97
Strdmer, PhiHpp Jacob,
Soabia, the Sdiool of, 4
Sues* Ton KulmbMh, Ham,
SoiMT. PraC J. O. aif , ya, go«
,lkaMQ8l<««

Thomann, )am«* InHait

-nmae, J., a88
Titian, ai6, 933, 935
Tyrol, the School of, 4

UrrsNBAcu, FbiUpp, laa, 1*3, ao/

Van on Botch, 183
Vaa dcr Goes, Hugo, 96, 99
Van der Weijden, Rofier, aa, 43,

99

Van Eijck, Jan, 99, Me
VaaUiipul>M. »..eo>
Van uum. Lmm, m.n*
VaeLee,Aii*«r.(ft
Van kiaadar, Catai, m
VmiO(W1.B«mi«.«6
VaeapWat. tt4,m

VamiMlli, Doe Plwe^ wgf
VtmA, 4e. 4«. ra»
Vi8eaiii,jw11<iM
Vinddor. T^MMMO.97
von aaoBeai,
Voa Watorg, H»

Waiham,

terjr. 197, ana
Watteaa. Amahn, wga
urababe ««■ Hirtt. Mmw. »«.

7. •. «S
WRIa, JekMeOoaige, soe
WilBam of Baaifki. «m IMm, t«
WiUiama, Sb Ifawlierj. •4e
WimphcUng, Jaaab^ 4s
Wohlgemuth, lllrtiaal, 54, 7a
Wynriakt HarMM, af WMri« Ct

Xatd. Meaa, 301. 3Be
XlLAM, Cardinal. 45 :

Priilii tf BauAMrvMB. Hamom Co,