Kar met Maximiliaan I van Habsburg (keizer van het Heilige Roomse Rijk) en allegorieën

Kar met Maximiliaan I van Habsburg (keizer van het Heilige Roomse Rijk) en allegorieën is an important print created by the German Renaissance master Albrecht Dürer in 1523. Rendered on paper using printing techniques, this complex composition dates from the later period of Dürer’s prolific career, focusing on imperial political allegory and commemoration. Though the print was executed four years after the death of Emperor Maximilian I, whose reign profoundly shaped early 16th-century German patronage and culture, Dürer produced this image as a symbolic homage, intended for wide distribution as one of his many significant historical prints.

The composition functions as a commemorative allegory, depicting the late Holy Roman Emperor riding in a symbolic cart. Maximilian I, who passed away in 1519, had been a crucial figure in Dürer’s life, famously commissioning monumental and complex projects such as the Triumphal Arch to solidify his legacy. In this piece, Dürer elevates the historical figure to a mythical status, blending Renaissance ideals of classical heroism with contemporary dynastic history. The various allegorical figures flanking the cart likely represent virtues or perhaps provinces within the sprawling Habsburg domains, emphasizing the Emperor’s enduring influence.

This detailed image demonstrates Dürer’s supreme mastery of complex linear structure and detailed narrative, essential qualities of the Northern Renaissance school of printmaking. The existence of high-quality early impressions of such historical works, including this example housed within the collection of the Rijksmuseum, ensures accessibility for global scholarship. Given its age and established provenance, the imagery found in Dürer’s Kar met Maximiliaan I van Habsburg... is widely considered part of the public domain, guaranteeing the continued study of the artist’s political and allegorical prints.