Elector John Frederick the Magnanimous of Saxony (1543): Artwork and History

Elector John Frederick the Magnanimous of Saxony (1543) is in the Art Institute of Chicago collection. The museum lists its creator attribution as Georg Pencz German, c.1500-1550.

The work and its context

The Art Institute of Chicago describes the work:

Georg Pencz’s largescale engraving includes over a dozen coats-of-arms. Frederick and his nephew supported Martin Luther and the Reformation, through both direct financial aid as well as through their support of the artistic propaganda machine directed by Lucas Cranach and his workshop. Indeed, the floral crest at John Frederick’s right elbow represents the Luther Rose, a bold symbol of his commitment to Lutheranism.

Object facts

• Title: Elector John Frederick the Magnanimous of Saxony
• Date: 1543
• Artist attribution: Georg Pencz German, c.1500-1550
• Place of origin: Germany
• Medium: Engraving in black on ivory laid paper
• Dimensions: Image: 40 × 30.9 cm (15 3/4 × 12 3/16 in.); Sheet: 40.4 × 31.2 cm (15 15/16 × 12 5/16 in.)
• Type: Print
• Department: Prints and Drawings
• Reference number: 1923.323

Collection credit

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. Potter Palmer, Jr.

View the original

Explore the artwork in the Art Institute's collection, including its image and the museum's current catalogue details.

The description above is credited to the Art Institute of Chicago and reused under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0; HTML formatting has been converted to plain text. Other catalogue metadata and the public-domain image are provided under CC0 1.0.