Artwork
The Stag Hunt of the Elector Frederic the Wise (1463-1525) of Saxony
The Stag Hunt of the Elector Frederic the Wise (1463-1525) of Saxony is an oil painting by the Northern Renaissance artist Lucas Cranach the Elder. It dates from 1529 and is held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst.
About this work
Subject & Meaning
Set within a landscape featuring mountains, the composition includes a boat and hunting dogs actively engaged in the pursuit of a stag.
The painting depicts a hunting scene centered on Frederick III, Elector of Saxony, also known as Frederick the Wise. Set within a landscape featuring mountains, the composition includes a boat and hunting dogs actively engaged in the pursuit of a stag.
As a genre landscape created in 1529, the work functions as a commemorative representation of the Elector's leisure and status. The inclusion of specific elements like the hunting party and the natural environment underscores the aristocratic tradition of the hunt, serving as a visual record of Frederick's identity and activities.
Technique & Style
The work is executed in oil paint on panel, a standard support for Lucas Cranach the Elder's small-format cabinet pictures of the late 1520s. Its modest dimensions, 56.5 cm in height by 80.5 cm in width, and horizontal landscape format suit an intimate devotional or commemorative function rather than a large altarpiece. The composition is classified as a landscape painting, with the stag hunt staged against a mountainous backdrop and incorporating a boat, hunting dogs, and the figure of Frederick III of Saxony.
Cranach's handling in this period typically combined detailed foreground figures with atmospheric, layered distance, and the panel support allowed the fine, precise brushwork for which his hunting scenes are noted.
The painting is held by the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it is catalogued as a 1529 oil on panel.
History & Provenance
Lucas Cranach the Elder executed this oil painting on panel in 1529. The work depicts Frederick III, Elector of Saxony, engaged in a stag hunt within a mountainous landscape accompanied by dogs and a boat. Since its creation, the painting has entered the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst, where it remains held today.
The Stag Hunt of the Elector Frederic the Wise is currently held in the collection of the Statens Museum for Kunst in Copenhagen. The painting, created by Lucas Cranach the Elder in 1529, is cataloged within the museum's inventory as a landscape work depicting Frederick III of Saxony. While the specific inventory or accession number is not provided in the available records, the work is identified by its presence in this Danish national gallery. No exhibition history is documented in the provided sources.
Overview
This oil painting, titled The Stag Hunt of the Elector Frederic the Wise (1463-1525) of Saxony, was completed in 1529 by Lucas Cranach the Elder. It presents a dynamic outdoor scene centered around a grand hunting expedition. The work is currently housed at the Statens Museum for Kunst, offering a glimpse into early 16th-century courtly life and landscape painting.
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Artist & collection
Artist
Lucas Cranach the Elder was a German Renaissance painter and printmaker in woodcut and engraving.
