Hartmann Schedel / Wohlgemut / Pleydenwurff / Durer - The Nuremberg Chronicle (Liber Chronicarum) - Impero di Rodolfo d'Asburgo e Successione Pontificia - 1493

This original leaf is an incunabulum from 1493, originating from the Liber Chronicarum, also known as the Nuremberg Chronicle, one of the most famous and monumental works in the early history of printing. The text was written by the German humanist Hartmann Schedel, printed by the renowned publisher Anton Koberger in Nuremberg, and illustrated with woodcuts from the workshop of Michael Wolgemut and Wilhelm Pleydenwurff. The page belongs to the section titled "Sexta etas mundi", dedicated to the Christian era. The leaf magnificently juxtaposes the restoration of imperial power in the Holy Roman Empire at the end of the 13th century with the contemporary events of the papacy and the flourishing of medical and legal sciences at Italian universities.
The front of the sheet (which bears the woodcut numeration CCXVI at the top right) concentrates on the stability of the Empire under the heading of the woodcut line "Linea imperatorum". The right column opens with the solemn portrait of Rudolf I of Habsburg (Rudolphus), celebrated in Latin text for having ended the Great Interregnum and for his military virtues, including the decisive victory over the Bohemian king Ottokar II. Further down, the left column hosts two portraits: the unfortunate Saxon claimant Conradin of Swabia (Conradinus), executed in Naples after the Battle of Tagliacozzo, and the devout figure of Saint Hedwig of Silesia (S. Hedwigis). The text delves into the dramatic struggles between the factions of the Guelfs and Ghibellines in Italy and also describes the tragic events connected with the end of the Hohenstaufen dynasty.
The back of the sheet shifts the focus to the supreme guides of the Church and to scientific culture, under the woodcut heading "Linea summorum pontificum". The right column shows vertical portraits of two popes who marked the late 13th century: Pope John XXI (Ioannes vicesim[us] prim[us]), the only pope of Portuguese origin, renowned for his extraordinary medical and philosophical erudition, and Pope Nicholas III (Nicolaus tercius), belonging to the powerful Roman Orsini family. The lower part of the page is enriched by two eminent intellectual and scientific figures: on the left, the famous anatomist and Piacenza-born surgeon Guglielmo da Saliceto (Guilhelmus placentinus medicus), author of fundamental medical treatises, and on the right the French jurist Guglielmo Durante (Guilhelmus durandi Speculator). The Latin texts praise their teaching, doctrinal speculation, and the academic legacy left to future generations.
Dimensions 45 x 31 cm
It will be shipped by courier.