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Original fileChristus zegent de Heilige Hedwig van Silezië
About This Work
The print depicts a mystical encounter within an arched interior where the Duchess Hedwig experiences a divine vision. While the saint remains in a posture of deep devotion, the animated figure of Christ reaches out from the wood of the cross in a gesture of benediction. In the background, a group of figures are seen at a table, likely representing Hedwig’s life of charity or her role in a monastic community.
Created by Aegidius Sadeler II, the preeminent engraver at the court of Emperor Rudolf II in Prague, this work reflects the late Mannerist interest in mystical visions and spiritual intensity. The inscription's focus on 'Love' (Amor) as a cosmic force that 'moved the stars' yet humbles itself on the cross mirrors Neoplatonic concepts of divine eros often discussed in Rudolfine intellectual circles.
Inscriptions(Latin)
S. HEDVVIGIS.. Boio creta satu princeps et dia virago, Cuius ab infami stirpe pependit amor. En quid possit amor, dextram, quae sidera voluit, In cruce fixit amor, de cruce soluit amor; O felix HEDVVIGIS amor, cui gaudia mundi Supplicium fuerant, deliciumq[ue] DEVS. Tantus amor soli sibi non satis ardet, amatq[ue]; Si posset dominum vincere, vellet amor. 55
Translation
SAINT HEDWIG Born of Bohemian stock, a princess and a divine heroine, From whose infamous lineage hung love. Behold what love can do: the right hand that turned the stars, Love fixed to the cross, love released from the cross; O happy love of HEDWIG, to whom the joys of the world Were a torment, and GOD her delight. Such great love does not burn enough for itself alone, and it loves; If love could conquer the Lord, it would wish to do so. 55
Connected Texts
Aegidius Sadeler II
The artist was the principal engraver for Rudolf II, a monarch whose court was the central node for late Renaissance natural philosophy and esotericism.
Provenance & Source
Object
Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam
paper
width 156 mm x height 220 mm
religious
Linked Data
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