A SCARCE ORIGINAL ANTIQUE PRINT OVER 135 YEARS OLD

This engraving is from a series of illustrations produced for:

Freydal: des Kaisers Maximilian I. Turniere und Mummereien

(Freydal: the Emperor Maximilian I. tournaments and mummeries)

Printed in Viena 1881

THIS LISTING IS FOR THE SINGLE PRINT SHOWN

Printed on hand made paper with makers monogram watermark
Approximate sheet size 400mm x 300mm

Please note:
The image of the title page is for information
only and will not be supplied

****CONDITION****
PLEASE VIEW IMAGES TO SEE ANY HANDLING/AGE MARKS
/REPAIRS/DAMAGE/EXTENT OF MARGINS etc
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Please message with any questions regarding this item

(Freydal)

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The German emperor Maximilian (1459 -1519) was one of the more magnificent late medieval rulers.
He played an important role in late medieval politics and was responsible
for the rise of the house of Hapsburg as a significant European power.
But he was also a passionate hunter as well as a magnificent exponent
for the late medieval tournament. Later times dubbed him “the last knight”.

In late medieval and early modern Europe tournament books formed – and recorded – a seminal element of pomp and circumstance.
Tournaments were lavishly orchestrated festivities with both social and political significance.
The competitions provided a stage for young noblemen to display their chivalry and bravery.
Tournament books document in detail - and often in richly illustrated form -
the sequence of particular tournaments hosted by a court or an aspiring merchant city.

The Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna owns one of the most important of all tournament books: known as Freydal,
it was made for Emperor Maximilian I (1459-1519) in Southern Germany in 1512-1515.
It consists of 255 (originally 256) drawings depicting jousts, foot combats and court masquerades.
Freydal depicts 64 tournaments, each one comprising a Rennen, a Stechen and a foot combat.
Every round concluded with a so-called Mummerey, a courtly masquerade held in the evening after the competition.

Freydal is both artistically and in terms of content a seminal and fascinating work.
Quirin von Leitner’s facsimile from 1881 is still the most comprehensive study
on this highlight of German art from the early 16th century and remains in many respects a valuable source.