Albrecht Dürer
(1471-1528)
Vier Apostel: Hll. Johannes Ev. und Petrus,
1526
Material / Technology / Carrier
Lindenholz (Tilia sp.)
Dimensions of the object
212,8 x 76,2 cm
Displayed
AP OG Saal II
Acquisition
Aus der Kammergalerie Kurfürst Maximilians I.; bis 1627 Rathaus zu Nürnberg
Stock
Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen - Alte Pinakothek München
Citation
Albrecht Dürer, Vier Apostel: Hll. Johannes Ev. und Petrus, 1526, Bayerische Staatsgemäldesammlungen - Alte Pinakothek München, URL: https://www.sammlung.pinakothek.de/en/artwork/apG9BRn4Zn (Last updated on 04.12.2023)
The panels on which Dürer depicts the three Apostles and Mark the Evangelist are like the wings of an altarpiece. The figures command awe. Their physiognomies are modelled on the four human temperaments and exude both vigilance and concentration. Four quotations from the Luther Bible on the lower edge of the picture call on “worldly rulers” to observe the words of the Bible and to “beware of false prophets”. With this clear message Dürer wanted to encourage the city council of his native Nuremberg, shortly before his death, to keep to the path of the Reformation, which he himself had also favoured. The composition shows the inspiration Dürer gained from Giovanni Bellini’s Frari triptych that he most probably saw in Venice in 1505/07.
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