Kunst und Zettel im Messer by Hans Lecküchner - Nuremberg, 1482
The 2021 HEMA Bookshelf edition (limited edition of 300 copies)
436 pages (Ⅰ + 216 + Ⅰ), 207 × 300 × 45 mm (12 × 9 × 2 in.)
This is a facsimile of the longest and most lavish fencing treatise of the 15th century, Kunst und Zettel im Messer. Commissioned by Hans Lecküchner in 1482 and dedicated to Philip “the Upright” von Wittelsbach, Count Palatine of the Rhine, it is currently Cgm 582 at the Bayerische Staatsbibliothek in München, Germany.
The facsimile uses rag paper with gilded edges and is bound according to the current quire structure. The original binding and covers were discarded in the 1960s; they are reconstructed here based on library descriptions, using a half-pigskin binding with beveled beech boards and a blind tooling pattern based on a coeval half-leather binding from Nürnberg.
Reverend Hans Lecküchner (Leckuechner, Lebkommer; ✝ 1482) was a 15th century German cleric and fencing master. He was born in the Nürnberg area, and in 1455 he was inscribed at the University of Leipzig. In 1457, he received the title of baccalaureus, and he was consecrated as a Catholic acolyte in 1459. At some point before creating his first manuscript in 1478, Lecküchner was consecrated as a priest. From 1480 until his death on December 31, 1482, he was employed as a communal priest in Herzogenaurach, Germany. Lecküchner dedicated his fencing manual to Philip “the Upright” von Wittelsbach, Count Palatine of the Rhine, but the nature of his connection to the elector remains unclear.
Two potential autograph copies of Lecküchner’s treatise are preserved: Heidelberg Cod. Pal. germ. 430, completed in 1478, and this manuscript, completed on 19 January 1482 (less than a year before his death). The latter mentions in the last paragraph that a previous draft had been produced, which was likely the source for the shorter version included by Hans von Speyer in the Salzburg ms. M.Ⅰ.29 in 1491.
Cgm 582 excels these other two contemporary copies of Lecküchner's teachings both in its length—it is half again as long as CPG 430—and in that nearly every page includes a lavish watercolor illustration by an artist from the circle of Michel Wolgemut. Indeed, there is no other 15th century fencing treatise comparable to this manuscript, and it would not be equaled until the writings of Paul Hektor Mayer in the 1540s and Joachim Meyer in the 1560s.
Also included is a 275-page companion volume with articles from some of the leading scholars in the field of historical European martial arts studies that highlight various aspects of the manuscript and the world it came from. The first section contains a detailed description of the manuscript and its history by Michael Chidester, as well as a full transcription by Carsten Lorbeer, et al.
The second section relates to Lecküchner himself. Daniel Burger describes the life and times of Hans Lecküchner in great detail. Falko Fritz discusses the physical properties of Messers and how they relate to Lecküchner’s teachings, and Jessica Finley delves into the unusual terminology used by Lecküchner (and Liechtenauer).
The third section looks at the wider landscape of Messer fencing that Lecküchner existed in. Dierk Hagedorn offers the first catalog of all surviving Messer and Dussack treatises. Olivier Dupuis discusses the concept of fencing in jest and in earnest and how it’s reflected in fencing treatises. Casper J. van Dijk and Oskar ter Mors evaluate the Messer teachings that predate Lecküchner and look for possible influences on his teachings. Finally, Adam Franti considers the place of Messers and Dussacks in art and society throughout the early modern period.