Heinrich Vogtherr

Vogtherr: The adulterer
The dance of death is expanded with an extra picture: The adulterer. Death stands behind the bed, holding the woman by her hair and placing his hand on the jealous husband's dagger.
Vogtherr: Crucifixion
Vogtherr adds a crucifixion scene, copied after Albrecht Dürer.

A s early as in 1544, Heinrich Vogtherr the Elder (1490-1556) published his copy of Holbein's dance of death in Augsburg. This makes his dance of death the first German Holbein-clone, (unless you include Aldegrever's 8 pictures). Vogtherr's dance of death is a rather close copy of Holbein's work, except that the images are laterally reversed and bigger.

Vogtherr follows the old printed sheets, which explains the German titles. For the same reason he leaves out the astrologer and (naturally) the pictures that were only added to the dance in the later editions from 1545-1562.

The sequence is the same as in the printed sheets and departs radically from Simulachres & Historiées. First comes the scenes from The Old Testament, then ecclesiastics (including the physician), secular men, and women ending with mother and child: Erschaffung des Menschen, Einführung ins paradeyß, Austreybung Adams, Fluch des Menschen, Der Pabst, Der Cardinal, Der Bischoff, Der Thumbherr, Der Abt, Der Pfarrer, Der Predicant, Der Münch, Der Artzet Der Kayser, Der Künig, Der Hertzog, Der Graff Der Ritter, Der Edelman, Der Rathsherr, Der Fürsprech, Der Richter, Der Reychmann, Der Kawffmann, Der Kramer, Der Schiffmann, Der Eebrecher, Der Ackermann, Der Alltmann, Die Kayserin, Die Künigin, Die Hertzogin, Die Gräffin, Die Edelfraw, Die Abtissin, Die Nunn, Das Allt weib, Das Jung kind, Die Gepain aller Menschen, Das Crucifix, Das Jüngst gericht and Das wappen des Todts

H L 1542 The publisher Jost de Negker (1485-1544, also called Jobst de Necker / Nekker / Dienecker) was a splendid artist in his own right, who is credited with the invention of multi-colour prints and the chiaroscuro-technique. In his older years he branched out as a publisher.

Many commentators want to affix de Negker's name to this book, but it's hard to see what role he's supposed to have played: The motifs were already designed by Holbein, and we know that Vogtherr cut the blocks, because he added his mark:

Vogtherr removed Hans Lützelburger's woodcutter's mark: a conjoined H and L in the lower, left corner of the duchess' bed. (see picture to the left). Instead Vogtherr replaced Lützelburger's mark with the year 1542 (picture to the right).

The text on the letter of indulgence
"ve tibi corona Superbia mea"

Mirror image of HVE Vogtherr then added his own mark — a laterally reversed HVE (Heinrich Vogtherr Elterer) — in the lower right corner of the advocate. Click here for a super-sized image of Vogtherr's advocate.

On the picture of the pope, a devil comes flying with a letter of indulgence. On the letter is a pseudo-inscription, which Vogtherr has replaced with a legible text (picture to the right): "ve tibi corona Superbia mea". I'm not an expert on Latin, but it sounds like a variation of Isaiah 28:1 "vae coronae superbiae". Isaiah means "Woe to the crown of pride", so the flying devil probably says "Woe to you, my crown of pride".

Vogtherr added 2 more scenes: The crucifixion (top right corner) and the adulterers (top left corner). It's a rather unpleasant picture with Death holding the woman fast by her hair so the husband can pierce the adulterous couple. The picture caused outrage at the time and only appeared in the 1544-edition. In some of the existing copies it has been destroyed.(1) In the later editions it was replaced by another: The same bed and the same room, but the couple were sitting together in the bed when Death arrives with mirror and hourglass.(2)

The book started with a discussion between Death and man, and each picture had a dialogue (in German) between Death and the dying, just as there is in all the "proper" dances of death. This text was included by Carl Helmuth in his copy of Vogtherr's woodcuts.

Resources

Here are the 40 prints arranged in the same sequence as in Imagines Mortis:

Vogtherr 1544: Creation
Creation
Vogtherr 1544: The Fall
The Fall
Vogtherr 1544: Expulsion
Expulsion
Vogtherr 1544: After the Fall
After the Fall
Vogtherr 1544: Bones of All Men
Bones of All Men
Vogtherr 1544: The Pope
The Pope
Vogtherr 1544: Emperor
Emperor
Vogtherr 1544: King
King
Vogtherr 1544: Cardinal
Cardinal
Vogtherr 1544: Empress
Empress
Vogtherr 1544: Queen
Queen
Vogtherr 1544: Bishop
Bishop
Vogtherr 1544: Duke
Duke
Vogtherr 1544: Abbot
Abbot
Vogtherr 1544: Abbess
Abbess
Vogtherr 1544: Nobleman
Nobleman
Vogtherr 1544: Canon
Canon
Vogtherr 1544: Judge
Judge
Vogtherr 1544: Lawyer
Lawyer
Vogtherr 1544: Senator
Senator
Vogtherr 1544: Preacher
Preacher
Vogtherr 1544: Priest
Priest
Vogtherr 1544: Monk
Monk
Vogtherr 1544: Nun
Nun
Vogtherr 1544: Old woman
Old woman
Vogtherr 1544: Physician
Physician
Vogtherr 1544: Rich man
Rich man
Vogtherr 1544: Merchant
Merchant
Vogtherr 1544: Sailor
Sailor
Vogtherr 1544: Knight
Knight
Vogtherr 1544: Count
Count
Vogtherr 1544: Old man
Old man
Vogtherr 1544: Countess
Countess
Vogtherr 1544: Noblewoman
Noblewoman
Vogtherr 1544: Duchess
Duchess
Vogtherr 1544: Peddler
Peddler
Vogtherr 1544: Peasant
Peasant
Vogtherr 1544: Child
Child
Vogtherr 1544: Judgement Day
Judgement Day
Vogtherr 1544: The escutcheon
The escutcheon
Vogtherr 1544: Lawyer
Lawyer

Other interpreters of Holbein's dance of death

Footnotes: (1) (2)

»Die Ehebruch-Szene in de Neckers Totentanz empörte die Zeitgenossen. Das Bild ist in einigen der erhaltenen Exemplare zerstört; es kommt in den meisten späteren Ausgaben nicht mehr vor«.
Uli Wunderlich, Der Tanz in den Tod, page 73.

The woodcut of the adulterer is not included on bildindex.de.

I have this description from Massmann in Kunst-Blatt no. 76, 22. September 1831, page 302.

Massmann also confirms that the scene wan't popular: »Ein grässlich Bild, nicht Holbeinisch, und - von der Zeit wahrscheinlich getadelt«.


Up to Holbein's great dance of death