Hunting near Hartenfels Castle

Hunting near Hartenfels Castle

Titles

Hunting near Hartenfels Castle

[The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

'Jagd zu Wasser anno 1540'

[Gemäldegalerie Dresden, Inventory 1722-1728, B 1527]

Painting on wood (transferred from wood to wood-veneered honeycomb panel)

Medium

Painting on wood (transferred from wood to wood-veneered honeycomb panel)

[The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

This animated court hunt scene was commissioned by the rulers of Saxony and is set near their residence, Hartenfels Castle, which stands in the background. The Elector of Saxony John Frederick the Magnanimous, shown in the bottom left corner, is depicted in dark green hunting attire; he spans his crossbow

This animated court hunt scene was commissioned by the rulers of Saxony and is set near their residence, Hartenfels Castle, which stands in the background. The Elector of Saxony John Frederick the Magnanimous, shown in the bottom left corner, is depicted in dark green hunting attire; he spans his crossbow and waits for a stag to cross the river. On the opposite side stands his wife, the Electress Sibylle, poised to take the first ceremonial shot. By spreading various running animals and armed noblemen across the surface, the artist executed an extremely complex composition. The prince electors of Saxony were passionate practitioners of parforce hunting with dogs - elaborate, highly rehearsed occasions, coordinated by the use of signals from hunting horns. The green areas and the wavy river increase the rhythm in the painting. Lucas Cranach the Elder dated this work and signed it with an insignia of a winged snake at the lower right (on the boat). The 1577 in the right-hand corner is the house of Saxony's inventory number.

[The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

Attributions
Lucas Cranach the Elder
Lucas Cranach the Younger

Attributions

Lucas Cranach the Elder

[The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017] [Kolb 2005 A, 160]

Lucas Cranach the Younger

[Friedländer, Rosenberg 1979, No. 412B] [Exhib. Cat. Berlin 1937, no. 122]

Production date
1540

Production date

1540

[dated]

Dimensions
Dimensions of support: 116.80 x 170.20 cm (45 15/16 x 67 inches)

Dimensions

  • Dimensions of support: 116.80 x 170.20 cm (45 15/16 x 67 inches)

  • Dimensions including frame: 133 x 185.5 x 7.3 cm (52 5/16 x 73 x 2 13/16 inches)

  • [The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

Signature / Dating

Artist's insignia lower right on boat: winged serpent and dated '1540'

Signature / Dating

  • Artist's insignia lower right on boat: winged serpent and dated '1540'

  • [The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

Inscriptions and Labels

Recto: - lower right:
inventory number: '1577'
[The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

Inscriptions and Labels

Stamps, Seals, Labels:

  • Recto: - lower right:

  • inventory number: '1577'

  • [The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

Owner
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Repository
The Cleveland Museum of Art
Location
Cleveland
CDA ID
US_CMA_1958-425
FR (1978) Nr.
FR412B
Persistent Link
https://lucascranach.org/en/US_CMA_1958-425/

Provenance

  • Moritzburg, near Dresden
    [Gemäldegalerie Dresden, Inventory 1722-1728, B 1527]
    [Friedländer, Rosenberg 1979, no. 412B]
  • after 1924 the Familienverein Haus Wettin (Albertinische Linie e. V.) was given the painting as part of a settlement, a result of the so-called 'Fürstenabfindung' (expropriation of the dynastic properties of the former ruling houses).
    [Kolb 2005 A, 159]
  • M. H. Drey, London
  • 1958 aquired by the Cleveland Museum of Art (John L. Severance Fund)
    [The Cleveland Museum of Art, revised 2017]

Exhibitions

Berlin 1937, no. 122
Kronach 1994, no. 131
Torgau 2004, no. 219
Torgau 2015, no. 42

Literature

Reference on page Catalogue Number Figure / Plate
Exhib. Cat. Gotha, Kassel 2015 236
EditorJulia Carrasco, Justus Lange, Stiftung Schloss Friedenstein, Gotha, Benjamin D. Spira, Timo Trümper
TitleBild und Botschaft. Cranach im Dienst von Hof und Reformation, [Gotha, Herzogliches Museum; Kassel, Gemäldegalerie Alte Meister, Schloss Wilhelmshöhe]
Place of PublicationHeidelberg
Year of Publication2015
Exhib. Cat. Torgau 2015 105, 106 42 Fig. 42
EditorStaatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden, Dirk Syndram, Yvonne Wirth, Iris Yvonne Wagner
TitleLuther und die Fürsten. Selbstdarstellung und Selbstverständnis des Herrschers im Zeitalter der Reformation [Schloss Hartenfels, Torgau]
Place of PublicationLeipzig
Year of Publication2015
Franklin, Mann 2012 168 f.
AuthorDavid Franklin, Griffith C. Mann
TitleTreasures from the Cleveland Museum of Art
Place of PublicationLondon
Year of Publication2012
Wunder 2010 44 f. Fig. 10
AuthorHeide Wunder
TitleRegierende Fürstinnen des 16. Jahrhunderts im Heiligen Römischen Reich deutscher Nation: Teilhabe an Herrschaft, Konfessionsbildung und Wissenschaften
Publicationin Birgit Emich, Eva Schlotheuber, eds., Herzogin Elizabeth von Braunschweig-Lüneburg (1510 - 1558). Herrschaft - Konfession - Kultur [Hannover, 2010]
Place of PublicationHannover
Year of Publication2011
Pages34-55
Kolb 2005 A 160, 173 Fn. 245, 246 Fig. 72
AuthorKarin Kolb
TitleCranach - Die Gemälde in Dresden und ihre Geschichte
Publicationin Harald Marx, Ingrid Mössinger, Karin Kolb, eds., Cranach. Gemälde aus Dresden, Exhib. Cat. Chemnitz
Place of PublicationCologne
Year of Publication2005
Pages112-173
Kolb 2005 C 539
AuthorKarin Kolb
TitleDokumentation zum Dresdener Cranach-Bestand
Publicationin Harald Marx, Ingrid Mössinger, Karin Kolb, eds., Cranach. Gemälde aus Dresden, Exhib. Cat. Chemnitz
Place of PublicationCologne
Year of Publication2005
Pages526-572
Pérez d'Ors 2005 8, 13
AuthorPablo Pérez d'Ors
TitleDos Cacerás de Lucas Cranach el Viejo en el Museo del Prado. Nuevos datos sobre las dos escenas de caza: historia material, obras similares y claves para su interpretación iconográfica e iconológica
JournalBoletín del Museo del Prado
Issue23, No.. 41
Year of Publication2005
Pages6-22
Exhib. Cat. Torgau 2004 159 (Bd. 1) 219
EditorHarald Marx, Eckhard Kluth, Cecilie Hollberg
TitleGlaube und Macht. Sachsen im Europa der Reformationszeit. 2. Sächsische Landesaussellung Schloss Hartenfels Torgau
Volume1-2
Place of PublicationDresden
Year of Publication2004
Selzer 2003
AuthorStephan Selzer
TitleJagdszenen aus Sachsen. Die Jagd als höfisches Fest auf einem Tafelgemälde vom ernestinischen Hof (1540)
Publicationin Gerhard Fouquet, Harm von Seggern, Gabriel Zeilinger, eds., Höfische Feste im Spätmittelalter
SeriesMitteilungen der Residenzen-Kommission der Akademie der Wissenschaften zu Göttingen
VolumeSonderheft 6
Place of PublicationKiel
Year of Publication2003
Pages73-90
Exhib. Cat. Kronach 1994 310-313 131
EditorClaus Grimm, Johannes Erichsen, Evamaria Brockhoff
TitleLucas Cranach. Ein Maler-Unternehmer aus Franken [Festung Rosenberg, Kronach 17.05 - 21.08.1994; Museum der Bildenden Künste, Leipzig 07.09 - 06.11.1994]
SeriesVeröffentlichungen zur bayerischen Geschichte und Kultur
Volume26
Place of PublicationAugsburg, Coburg
Year of Publication1994
Cat. Cleveland 1982 163-165
EditorSherman Emery Lee
TitleEuropean Paintings of the 16th, 17th, and 18th Centuries. Catalogue of Paintings
Place of PublicationCleveland
Year of Publication1982
Friedländer, Rosenberg 1979 412B
AuthorMax J. Friedländer, Jakob Rosenberg
EditorG. Schwartz
TitleDie Gemälde von Lucas Cranach
Place of PublicationBasel, Boston, Stuttgart
Year of Publication1979
Exhib. Cat. Berlin 1937 45 122 Pl. 90
EditorStaatliche Museen, Berlin
TitleLucas Cranach d. Ä. und Lucas Cranach d. J. Gemälde, Zeichnungen, Graphik
Place of PublicationBerlin
Year of Publication1937
Friedländer, Rosenberg 1932 331b
AuthorMax J. Friedländer, Jakob Rosenberg
TitleDie Gemälde von Lucas Cranach
Place of PublicationBerlin
Year of Publication1932
Link http://digi.ub.uni-heidelberg.de/diglit/friedlaender1932
  • Hunting near Hartenfels Castle, 1540

Images

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Technical studies

2017Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • X-radiography
  • UV-light photography
  • Stereomicroscopy

Support

A record photograph of a detail of the reverse of the orginal wood panel taken before the transfer [shows it] to have been either beech or linden or walnut. Several knots were present and the original chiselmarks were evident.

Ground and Imprimatura

There is a white ground layer estimated to be chalk.

Underdrawing

Some fine black line preliminary drawing is detectable under the figures and architecture when viewed with infrared reflectography.

Paint Layers and Gilding

Glazes in oil paint were laid in to form the undertone for the landscape. A light yellowish brown toning is evident, followed by glazes of darker brown and green for the terrain and grey wash for the water. Locally-applied opaque touches of color define the details of foliage and other vegetation. The figures appear to have been painted over the completed landscape including the blades of grass. The weapons and the antlers of the stags, in particular, clearly overlap the grass blades.

[Marcia Steele, The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2017]

2014Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • Infrared reflectography
  • irr

Underdrawing

DESCRIPTION

Tools/Material:

- fluid, black medium, brush; an initial design may have been executed with a stylus?

Type/Ductus:

- very careful underdrawing (presumably after a pre-existing design)

Function:

- relatively binding for the final painted version; faint lines are visible delineating the main contours, and describing details and facial features; no representation of volume with hatching-strokes; possibly some washes?

Deviations:

- very few corrections were made to the forms during the painting process; small changes for example the contours of some of the dogs in the background, the legs of the leaping stag in the middle ground.

INTERPRETATION

Attribution:

- Lucas Cranach the Elder or the Younger

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

  • photographed by The Cleveland Museum of Art

2014Technical examination / Scientific analysis

  • X-radiography
  • x_radiograph
  • created by The Cleveland Museum of Art

Condition Reports

Date2017

Condition Summary:

The transferred painting is in secure condition, although there are some areas of tented texture in the paint. The varnish is significantly discolored yellow, distorting the overall tonality of the composition. Additionally, it is marred by drips and splatters and is coated with a matte surface accumulation.

SUPPORT

Construction: The paint and ground layers have been transferred to a new panel support consisting of a 1/2" thick honeycomb core veneered with a 1/8" thick layer of pressed wood toward the face and 1/8" thick layer of mahogany on the reverse. The ground has been adhered to the pressed wood veneer with rabbit skin glue. The reverse side was sealed with varnish and wax. A cradle consisting of nine horizontal glued members and twelve vertical sliding members is attached to the reverse. This transfer treatment was carried out in 1959 by William Suhr. A radiograph of the lower right corner of the painting reveals the honeycomb support structure.

A record photograph of a detail of the reverse of the orginal wood panel taken before the transfer confirms the insect damaged condition of the wood. It appears to have been either beech or linden or walnut. Several knots were present and the original chisel marks were evident.

Condition: The support is in stable condition and completely planar.

PAINT/GROUND LAYERS

Construction: There is a white ground layer estimated to be chalk. Because of the transfer and the loss of the extreme margins, there are no details about its application to describe. The 1959 treatment notes also state that the ground layer was thinned during the transfer process.

Some fine black line preliminary drawing is detectable under the figures and architecture when viewed with infrared reflectography.

Glazes in oil paint were laid in to form the undertone for the landscape. A light yellowish brown toning is evident, followed by glazes of darker brown and green for the terrain and grey wash for the water. Locally-applied opaque touches of color define the details of foliage and other vegetation. The figures appear to have been painted over the completed landscape including the blades of grass. The weapons and the antlers of the stags, in particular, clearly overlap the grass blades.

Condition: The ground layer is in stable condition. The paint layers are also secure, although there are areas of horizontal tenting in the upper center and upper right regions. These deformities appear to be consolidated by the adhesive used in the transfer.

There is a network of cracquelure with related low cupping throughout the paint. The degree of cupping has been minimized by the transfer treatment, but is still prominent in the upper right corner. The paint is in generally very good condition, with some minor abrasion in some of the thinly-painted passages, such as the grey washes in the water. Losses are comparatively minimal for a panel painting of this size. Most of the paint loss is concentrated along the edges of the composition. A larger area of margin loss occurs along the middle right near the grouping of figures. These have been restored. Other significant restored paint losses are at H.49 W.19 cm from the lower right: H.75 W.53 cm from the lower right.

VARNISH

An older natural resin varnish was removed and replaced with dammar in 1998. Retouches were carried out using PVA medium.

[Marcia Steele, The Cleveland Museum of Art, 2017]

Citing from the Cranach Digital Archive

Entry with author
<author's name>, 'Hunting near Hartenfels Castle', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/US_CMA_1958-425/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})
Entry with no author
'Hunting near Hartenfels Castle', <title of document, data entry or image>. [<Date of document, entry or image>], in: Cranach Digital Archive, https://lucascranach.org/en/US_CMA_1958-425/ (Accessed {{dateAccessed}})

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