The Great Standard Bearer, 1587
Hendrick Goltziusexpand_more
Engravingexpand_more
Gift of Chichi Steiner and Tom Rassieur in honor of Kristin Lenaburgexpand_more 2023.32
Not on Viewexpand_more
Today’s army uses digital camouflage to make soldiers difficult to detect. Some consider this an advance on the sixteenth-century tactic of outfitting particularly brave men in embroidered and slit silk jackets with stuffed waists and puffy sleeves, pantaloons tied with bows, starched ruffs, and drop earrings, while elevating big billowing banners. It may not look it, but as this soldier tells us, this was a serious job: “I, the standard-bearer, ensure steadfastness of mind and heart: as long as I stand, the line holds, if I flee, it flees also.” To pay for his finery and to compensate him for being a prime target, the standard-bearer received three times the pay of the ordinary soldier.
Details
- Title
- The Great Standard Bearer
- Artist Life
- 1558–1617
- Role
- Artist
- Accession Number
- 2023.32
- Provenance
- Dr. Walter Beck (born 1895), Lugt 2603b, Berlin. [Hill-Stone, New York; sold November 27, 1990, to Tom Rassieur]
- Catalogue Raisonne
- Bartsch 125; Hollstein 255
- Curator Approved
This record has been reviewed by our curatorial staff but may be incomplete. These records are frequently revised and enhanced. If you notice a mistake or have additional information about this object, please email collectionsdata@artsmia.org.
Does something look wrong with this image? Let us know
Zoom in on the left to the detail you'd like to save. Click 'Save detail' and wait until the image updates. Right click the image to 'save image as' or copy link, or click the image to open in a new tab.