Hartmann Schedel / Wohlgemut / Pleydenwurff / Durer - The...

This original sheet is an incunabulum from 1493, derived from the Liber Chronicarum, also known as the Nuremberg Chronicle, one of the most famous and monumental works in the early history of printing. The text was written by the German humanist Hartmann Schedel, printed by the celebrated publisher Anton Koberger in Nuremberg, and illustrated with woodcuts from the workshop of Michael Wolgemut and Wilhelm Pleydenwurff. The page belongs to the section titled 'Sexta etas mundi', dedicated to the Christian era. The text masterfully intertwines the biographies of some of the most famous saints and evangelizers of central-northern Europe with the complex and tumultuous dynastic succession on the throne of the Eastern Roman Empire in Constantinople. The front of the sheet opens with the biography of Saint Egidius Abbot (Egidius abbas), described as a native of Athens of royal lineage, renowned for his miracles, his hermitic life, and the founding of his famous monastery. On the right stands the solemn woodcut portrait of Saint Boniface (Bonifacius archiepiscopus), the apostle of Germany, remembered for his tireless work of converting the Germanic peoples, the erection of the metropolitan seat at Mainz, and his final martyrdom in Frisia. Below his chronicle, another text examines the historical origins of Venice and its first settlements (De patriarchatu venetiarum). The lower section of the page houses portraits and biographies of a group of famous Irish and Frankish saints and martyrs devoted to preaching: Saint Hilary of Arles (Elarius eps), Saint Wolfrannus (Wclfrannus), Saint Remigius (Remigius eps), followed by a woodcut niche grouping Saint Colonato (S. Colonat.), Saint Kilian (S. Kilian.), and Saint Totnan (S. Totnan), martyred at Würzburg during the evangelization of Franconia. Turning the page, the back (which bears at the top right the woodcut numbering Folium CLXI) abruptly shifts the narrative to the political events of Constantinople, illustrating the Linea Imperatorum through four richly detailed vertical portraits. The first profile at the top is that of Emperor Philippicus Bardane (Philippicus), remembered for his monothelete heretical position and his violent deposition. Below him stands Anastasius II (Anastasius), who sought to restore Catholic orthodoxy and defend Constantinople before being deposed. Followed by the short reign of Theodosius III (Theodosius tertius), a reluctant monarch who abdicated to retire to a monastery after the rebellion of the Eastern armies. The column closes at the bottom with the portrait of Leo III the Isaurian (Leo tertius), whose long and controversial empire was deeply marked by harsh iconoclastic campaigns, sharp jurisdictional clashes with Pope Gregory, and devastating Saracen incursions that laid waste the imperial territories and southern Europe. Dimensions 42 x 31 cm It will be shipped by courier.

Stima:€180

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