Freydal

A woodcut print depicting a dynamic tournament scene where a knight in full plate armor and a feathered crest remains steady on his horse. His opponent is captured in mid-fall, completely inverted with his feet in the air as his horse stumbles forward. The composition uses stark black-and-white lines to emphasize the heavy decorative patterns on the horses' coverings and the kinetic energy of the collision.

This work belongs to an ambitious series of woodcuts commissioned by Maximilian I to commemorate his jousting exploits and chivalric virtues. These projects were central to the Emperor's 'Gedechtnis' (memorial), an early modern program to secure his eternal fame through the cutting-edge technology of the printing press and the revival of courtly ritual.