205 as its basis, the 25 individual sections were produced separately, first drawn 1:1, then prepared as a wooden model and subsequently cast. They were made in Freiberg in the Hilligers’ foundry, which enjoyed a good reputation, both in Saxony and beyond, and were transported to Torgau by a carter with two horses, where they were assembled. It is possible that a bronze plaque of this size (332 × 184 × 16 cm) weighed well over 2,000 kilos.6 The author of the artistic design of the plaque has not been determined; the relevant research literature cites the Hilligers, an anonymous Augsburg artist, the Nuremberg artist Peter Flötner and the equally anonymous master of the George Gate in Dresden.7 However, it is only natural to think of court designer and painter Lucas Cranach for such a highly-ranking electoral commission. A collaboration between the Freiberg foundry and Cranach’s workshop in Wittenberg is documented, for example, in the case of “portraits” on cannons,8 so that a cooperation on the design of the Torgau plaque does not seem unlikely. Cranach was involved in the production process, as his employees were present during the erection of the plaque in the chapel in order to carry out the aforementioned gilding and possibly to paint over cracks etc. at the joints when assembling the 25 individual sections, which had to be cast very precisely so that they could be put together like a jigsaw puzzle. Of bronze plaques and title pages: reflections on the artistic design by the Cranach workshop The plaque is framed symmetrically by plinths, pilasters and entablatures, which display a lavish abundance of animals, people and plants in bas-relief, including rams, dolphins, lion heads and bull skulls as well as angels bearing the Saxon coat of arms in the four corners. When it comes to the question of who designed the bronze plaque, attention has so far been focused exclusively on the portrait medallions. It may be the case, however, that the overall composition also reveals a new perspective on the authorship, reminiscent as it is of title pages featuring elaborate frames, many of which were designed by the Cranach workshop. The high productivity of Reformation authors, led by Luther and Melanchthon, meant that Wittenberg had, by the 16th century, become the leading printing centre in Germany, leaving Leipzig far behind and competing with economic centres such as Augsburg and Basel.9 Cranach, an entrepreneur who enjoyed great success in the art, printing, pharmacy, wine, and property trades, contributed to the success of the Wittenberg printing industry with his own press—active only for a few years— and above all with his illustrations, including When the mathematician and geographer Tilemann Stella visited Torgau in 1560, his attention was focused on the Castle Chapel, which was, he suspected, possessed of a possibly exemplary nature in terms of its architecture and design. The sketches in his surviving diary offer detailed insights into the cubature, structure and decoration of the Castle Chapel.2 The sketch of the pulpit, altar and organ is followed on one and a half pages by a detailed visualisation of the bronze endowment plaque, which occupied a far more important position at the time than it does today (fig. 1). This is because, in 1914, it was moved to the narrow eastern side of the chapel as a result of renovation work, and could no longer be seen by those facing the pulpit and altar, positioned as it was behind those members of the congregation.3 Previously, it had occupied a central position to the left of the altar on the sloping wall of the chapel tower, in keeping with its status as a magnificent endowment plaque attesting to occasions of significance. The hand-drawn sketch of the bronze plaque, its description and, in particular, the complete transcript of its text, occupy far more space in Stella’s diary than his ruminations on altar table or pulpit, for instance, so that their significance for this early visitor appears both unquestioned and blatantly conspicuous. He both desired to, and indeed did understand the Castle Chapel solely as a complete work of art encompassing architecture and decoration, sculptures and text panels. The production of the bronze plaque The bronze plaque consists of 25 individual sections and was produced during the year 1545, as the dates on the portrait medallions clearly demonstrate. However, planning for this began as early as the weeks of the ceremonial opening, in October/November 1544, as the versified inscription was already available at this time. The plaque thus constituted an integral part of the Castle Chapel’s iconographic and decorative concept from the very beginning. However, the production process proved protracted, lasting for months, this testified to by the advance and final payments to the craftsmen involved; the last documented payment, for the gilding of the bronze plaque, was made for work by the Cranach workshop between the end of January and mid-March 1546.4 Accordingly, it was only completed and brought to the site around a year and a half after Luther’s ceremonial inauguration of the chapel. In the context of art history, the plaque is deemed a pinnacle of Saxon sculpture thanks to its portraits, coats of arms and architectural elements, produced by two representatives of the well-known Freiberg bell and cannon foundry family Hilliger (or Hilger), Wolfgang and Oswalt.5 Taking an overall sketch of the plaque
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