The Penance of St John Chrysostom. Lucas Cranach the Elder and Artistic Rivalry

The Penance of St John Chrysostom (H. 1) is a unique work among the prints executed by Lucas Cranach the Elder. The article presents an interpretation of the piece as a showcase of Cranach’s artistic prowess, alluding to the origins and function of his art, as well as to the challenges he set for himself. The work was inspired by Albrecht Dürer’s engraving from c.1496 (H. 54) depicting a surprising interpretation of a legend included in Der Heiligen Leben, a work written around 1400 by the Dominican monks of Nuremberg. Cranach’s Penance of St John Chrysostom proves that the artist understood Dürer’s concept, while also introducing significant modifications. He added animals, the choice of which evokes associations with hunting and court menageries. The impulse to engage in such an artistic competition with Dürer’s works may have come from the words of praise that Cranach was receiving from the German humanist milieu. Comparisons between the two artists were a frequent motif in such texts, the most noteworthy of which is the eulogy by Christoph II Scheurl (1481–1542). By alluding to the ‘courtly dimension’ of his art, highly valued at the time, Cranach created a work that was a visual manifesto of his artistic potential and position at the Wittenberg court.