Emperor Maximilian on Horseback
by BURGKMAIR, Hans, Tonal woodcut, 317 x 225 mm
Hans Burgkmair was a major designer of woodcuts for Augsburg book publishers. His designs for woodcuts found a ready patron when Emperor Maximilian sought to have his likeness and politics circulated in visual form throughout the Holy Roman Empire. To commemorate Maximilian’s official coronation, Burgkmair designed a pendant pair of equestrian woodcuts, one of the emperor’s knightly role model, St George Slaying the Dragon, the other of Emperor Maximilian on Horseback. This latter print was the first major experiment in coloured printmaking.