The Schreiter epitaph [left part]: Allegory of Law and Grace

The Schreiter epitaph [left part]: Allegory of Law and Grace

Title

The Schreiter epitaph [left part]: Allegory of Law and Grace

[cda 2017]

Painting on wood

Medium

Painting on wood

[Sandner 1993, 243]

Alder and Lime wood

[Mayer, conservation report 2016]

A tree divides the panel in half. On the left side the tree is bare and the sinner is driven into hell fire by death and the devil, while Moses shows him the Tables of the Law. The Fall of Man is illustrated in the background - the reason for

A tree divides the panel in half. On the left side the tree is bare and the sinner is driven into hell fire by death and the devil, while Moses shows him the Tables of the Law. The Fall of Man is illustrated in the background - the reason for man's damnation. Christ is shown in the sky as judge and the angels call to the Last Judgment.

On the right side the tree has leaves. St John the Baptist shows the believer Christ, who died for him on the cross. In the middle-ground the risen Christ appears as victor over death and the devil. The brazen serpent in the background is an Old Testament prefiguration of the crucifixion. At the right edge the Virgin stands on a hill and the infant Christ carrying the cross flies towards her in anticipation of his incarnation.

Along the bottom edge are quotations from the bible.

Attribution
Antonius Heusler

Attribution

Antonius Heusler

[Emmendörffer 1998, 219][Sandner 1993, 243]

Production dates
1556
about 1552-1561

Production dates

1556

[dated]

about 1552-1561

[Emmendörffer 1998, 219][Sandner 1993, 240, 243]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 188 x 160 x 0.9 cm

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 188 x 160 x 0.9 cm

  • [Mayer, conservation report 2016]

Signature / Dating

Artist's insignia under the Cross: grasshopper and dated '1556'

Signature / Dating

  • Artist's insignia under the Cross: grasshopper and dated '1556'

Inscriptions and Labels
  • along the bottom edge quotations from the bible

Inscriptions and Labels

Inscriptions, Badges:

    • along the bottom edge quotations from the bible
Owner
Erzgebirgsmuseum Annaberg-Buchholz
Repository
Erzgebirgsmuseum Annaberg-Buchholz
Location
Annaberg-Buchholz
CDA ID
DE_EMA_EMA004
FR (1978) Nr.
FR-none
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/DE_EMA_EMA004/

Provenance

  • originally in the crypt of the St.-Trinitatis cemetery in Annaberg (pendant lost)
    [Sandner 1993, 243]

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Sandner 2021 79, 80 Fig. 10
AuthorIngo Sandner
TitleDie Werkstattpraxis Lucas Cranach des Älteren
Publicationin Dagmar Täube, ed., Lucas Cranach der Ältere und Hans Kemmer. Meistermaler zwischen Renaissance und Reformation [Lübeck, St. Annen-Museum]
Place of PublicationMunich
Year of Publication2021
Pages71-81
Show Literature
Emmendörffer 1998 219-221 Fig. 22.15
AuthorChristoph Emmendörffer
TitleDie selbständigen Cranachschüler
Publicationin Ingo Sandner, Wartburg-Stiftung Eisenach and Fachhochschule Köln, eds., Unsichtbare Meisterzeichnungen auf dem Malgrund. Cranach und seine Zeitgenossen, Exhib. Cat. Eisenach
Place of PublicationRegensburg
Year of Publication1998
Pages203-228
Show Literature
Sandner 1993 243
AuthorIngo Sandner
TitleSpätgotische Tafelmalerei in Sachsen
Place of PublicationDresden, Basel
Year of Publication1993
Show Literature
  • The Schreiter epitaph [left part]: Allegory of Law and Grace, 1556

Images

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Documents

Technical studies

08. 2016Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrarot-Reflektografie
  • irr

Underdrawing

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Material:

- fluid, black medium, brushes of varying widths

Type/Ductus:

- relatively detailed, freehand underdrawing

- thin to broader lines

- washes in the areas of shadow (particularly in the flesh paint and the robes)

Function:

- only roughly binding for the final painted version; the lines define the main contours; volume is indicated with washes

Deviations:

- corrections to forms were made during the painting process; numerous changes (e. g. there is one head less in the group next to the tree, the position of the devil beneath Christ’s foot was altered)

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- Antonius Heusler

[Sandner, Heydenreich, Smith-Contini, cda 2017]

  • photographed by Ingo Sandner
  • photographed by Gunnar Heydenreich

Conservation History

Date2016

  • surface cleaning (dry) of both the recto and verso of the panel

  • reconstruction of the the wooden support at the bottom right - damage caused by the tight fitting frame

  • reduction of the concave deformation

  • partial consolidation of the paint layers

  • removal of varnish layers and overpaint

  • filling and retouching of losses

  • new application of varnish

  • frame members cleaned

  • toning, retouching and application of a patina to the frame, including the gold strips

  • conservation treatment by Susanne Mayer

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'The Schreiter epitaph [left part]: Allegory of Law and Grace', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/DE_EMA_EMA004/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'The Schreiter epitaph [left part]: Allegory of Law and Grace', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/DE_EMA_EMA004/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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