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Luther as an Augustinian Friar, with Cap

A work made of engraving in black on cream laid paper.
CC0 Public Domain Designation

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  • A work made of engraving in black on cream laid paper.

Date:

1521

Artist:

Lucas Cranach the Elder
German, 1472-1553

About this artwork

Perhaps Lucas Cranach’s most famous and most copied print, this profile portrait of Martin Luther was an accurate likeness; the artist and the Reformer were friends. Luther appears in his doctoral cap, as he taught at the University of Wittenberg. Possibly made to commemorate the scholar’s radical performance at the Diet of Worms, the print circulated when Luther was presumed dead but was actually in hiding, translating the New Testament into German. The Latin inscription translates as, “Lucas’s work is this picture of Luther’s mortal form; but he himself expressed his spirit’s eternal form,” and closes with Cranach’s flying serpent insignia.

Status

Currently Off View

Department

Prints and Drawings

Artist

Lucas Cranach, the Elder

Title

Luther as an Augustinian Friar, with Cap

Place

Germany (Artist's nationality:)

Date  Dates are not always precisely known, but the Art Institute strives to present this information as consistently and legibly as possible. Dates may be represented as a range that spans decades, centuries, dynasties, or periods and may include qualifiers such as c. (circa) or BCE.

1521

Medium

Engraving in black on cream laid paper

Dimensions

Image/plate/sheet: 20.7 × 15 cm (8 3/16 × 5 15/16 in.)

Credit Line

Gift of Mr. Potter Palmer, Jr.

Reference Number

1939.243

IIIF Manifest  The International Image Interoperability Framework (IIIF) represents a set of open standards that enables rich access to digital media from libraries, archives, museums, and other cultural institutions around the world.

Learn more.

https://api.artic.edu/api/v1/artworks/30275/manifest.json

Extended information about this artwork

Object information is a work in progress and may be updated as new research findings emerge. To help improve this record, please email . Information about image downloads and licensing is available here.

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