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Departing from 874 AD, the German
text develops the context of the 5th Council of Constantinople, held 879/880 AD
– an initiative of Pope Johannes VIII to appease the Byzantines and obtain their
aid against the Saracen threat in Italy.
The hand-colored woodcut of the council shows the pope and a large group of
clergy under the blessing of the Holy Spirit, who is depicted as a dove.
On the right, woodcuts of contemporary popes Johannes VIII, Martinus II,
Hadrianus III and Stephanus V, all wearing the tiara and holding the papal
ferula.
On the preceding page Ludwig II is depicted with the insignia of an emperor.
The text tells that during his reign there were three days of blood rain. Back
then this was a bad omen that made people fear the worst.
'Blood rain' is a meteorological phenomenon that occurs when reddish dust from
the Sahara Dessert precipitates with rain.
Page with hand-colored woodcuts from Hartmann Schedel's Liber Chronicarum, more
commonly known as the Nuremberg Chronicle. It was published in 1493 by Anton
Koberger in an edition of 2000 copies.
The woodcuts were confectioned in the workshops of Michael Wolgemut and Wilhelm
Pleydenwurf.
Rare hand-colored version. Beautiful late Gothic style.
Nuremberg, German edition, 1493 AD
Woodcut on laid paper
Leaf 40.8 cm (16 in) x 29.2 cm (11.5 in)
Clear print with vivid colors on laid paper. Paper lightly browned and
fingerstained. Page trimmed. Single wormhole.
As watermark large letter P of gothic form. Close in shape and size to ref. no.
DE4305-PO-107971 in Piccard's watermark database.
380 USD |
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