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Original fileEerste en tweede span paarden met allegorieën
About This Work
This print shows the first and second pairs of horses from a larger triumphal procession, guided by four women identified by labels as Providentia (Prudence), Moderatio (Moderation), Alacritas (Alacrity), and Oportunitas (Opportunity). The horses are adorned with elaborate ceremonial trappings and linked by heavy chains, while the women hold laurel wreaths and lead the animals by their reins. Extensive blocks of Latin text above the scene provide a philosophical explanation of how these virtues support the governance of a ruler.
This is a section of Dürer's 'Triumphal Chariot of Maximilian I,' a complex allegorical program designed by the humanist scholar Willibald Pirckheimer to celebrate the moral and political authority of the Holy Roman Emperor. It reflects the Renaissance Neoplatonic interest in the 'Mirror for Princes' tradition, where the stability of the state is linked to the harmonious balance of cardinal and intellectual virtues.
Inscriptions(Latin)
Currus hic triumphalis ad honorem Inuictissimi ac Gloriosissimi Principis diui Maximiliani Caesaris semper Augusti concinnatus, ac per Albertum Dürer deliniatus est. Currus hic quatuor vehitur rotis, Gloriae nempe, Magnificentiae, Dignitatis, et Honoris: quoniam iis sua Maiestas in- ter cunctos alios excellebat Reges & Principes. Deinde in quatuor angulis Currus quatuor constitutae sunt Columnae, Iustitia nempe, Fortitudo, Prudentia, Tempera- tia. Ex quibus reliquae uirtutes cunctae exordium sumunt, citra quas nemo, uel Rex, uel Princeps, recte gubernare & regere potest. Et quoniam Moderatio et Prouidentia Rationi sunt coniunctae, ideo equi duo, rationi propinqui, duabus illis diriguntur uirtutibus, ut Currus moderate & omni gu- bemetur prouidentia. Et exquo uirtutes hae Cardinales ita inter se connexae sunt, ut una sine aliis perfecta esse nequeat, pariter & reliquae uirte- tutes ex ipsis ortum sumunt, ideo inter se colligantur. Siquidem cum ex Iustitia ueritas oriatur, illa sinistra coronam uerita- tis retinet, quam & Temperantia dextera sua tangit, quia sine ueritate Iusticia consistere nequit, nec sine illa Temperā- tia esse potest. Iustitia dextera sua coronam tangit Clementiae, quonia Iusticia non minus rigida, sed Clementia permixta esse debet, cui Clementiae inserta est Corona media, Aequitatis nempe, quia quemadmodum Iusticia nimio rigore carere, ita non semper remissa & lenis esse debet. Sequentes duo Equi per Alacritatem & Oportunitatem diriguntur, quia quemadmo- dum oportune Currum incedere decet, ita id alacriter fieri oportet. PROVIDENTIA MODERATIO ALACRITAS OPORTVNITAS
Translation
This triumphal chariot, fashioned in honor of the most invincible and glorious Prince, the divine Maximilian, Caesar forever Augustus, was delineated by Albrecht Dürer. This chariot is borne upon four wheels, namely Glory, Magnificence, Dignity, and Honor; since by these his Majesty excelled among all other Kings and Princes. Furthermore, at the four corners of the chariot, four columns are established: namely Justice, Fortitude, Prudence, and Temperance. From these, all other virtues take their origin, without which no one, neither King nor Prince, can rightly govern and rule. And since Moderation and Providence are joined to Reason, two horses, being near to reason, are directed by those two virtues, so that the chariot may be governed with moderation and all providence. And since these cardinal virtues are so connected among themselves that one cannot be perfect without the others, and likewise the remaining virtues take their rise from them, they are therefore bound together. Indeed, since truth arises from Justice, it (Justice) holds in its left hand the crown of truth, which Temperance also touches with its right hand, because without truth, Justice cannot stand, nor without it can Temperance exist. Justice touches with its right hand the crown of Clemency, because Justice must not be too rigid, but tempered with Clemency, to which Clemency is inserted the middle crown, namely Equity; because just as Justice should lack excessive rigor, so it should not always be relaxed and lenient. The following two horses are directed by Alacrity and Opportunity, because just as it behooves a chariot to proceed opportunely, so it must be done with alacrity. PROVIDENCE MODERATION ALACRITY OPPORTUNITY
Connected Texts
Willibald Pirckheimer
Pirckheimer was the humanist advisor who devised the complex allegorical and philosophical program for Dürer's Triumphal Chariot.
Maximilian I
The Holy Roman Emperor who commissioned this work as an expression of his imperial ideology and virtue.
Collections
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
height 415 mm x width 260 mm
allegory
Linked Data
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