Collection Online as of June 3, 2023

Crossbow and Cranequin of Elector Augustus I of Saxony

Germany, Saxony, 16th century

Wood (walnut?), bone veneers, flax cord, steel (etched, traces of gilding). woolen pompoms, stock decorated wih inlaid trophies of arms

Bow: 58.5 cm (23 1/16 in.); Butt: 5.7 cm (2 1/4 in.)

Gift of Mr. and Mrs. John L. Severance 1916.1723

Location

210A Armor Court

Fun Fact

<p>Augustus was a marksman who took part in crossbow competitions. He had a large collection and often gave them to friends.</p>

Description

This crossbow was a hunting weapon for Prince Elector Augustus I, a member of the ruling elite in the Holy Roman Empire. Augustus, powerful and wealthy, had even the most practical instruments ornately decorated, including this crossbow and its cranequin, or winding device.

Provenance

Richard Zschille (1847-1903), Leipzig, Germany

-1916

Frank Gair Macomber (1849-1941), Boston, MA, sold to the Cleveland Museum of Art

1916-

The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH

Citations

Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. Catalogue of an Exhibition of Arms and Armor: [Exhibition] Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Summer, 1899. Boston: The Museum, 1899. Cat. No. 277

Forrer, Robert. Die Waffensammlung des Herrn Stadtrath Rich. Zschille in Grossenhain (Sachsen). 1900. Mentioned: p. 27, cat. no. 1026a archive.org

Gilchrist, Helen Ives. A Catalogue of the Collection of Arms & Armor Presented to the Cleveland Museum of Art by Mr. and Mrs. John Long Severance; 1916-1923. Cleveland: The Cleveland Museum of Art, 1924. Mentioned: pp. 175-176, G9; Reproduced: Plate XXXVIII, G9 archive.org

Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms and Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: The Museum, 1998. Mentioned and reproduced: P. 134-137

Fliegel Stephen N., "The Armor Court", Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland Art: The Cleveland Museum of Art Members Magazine. Vol. 38 no. 07, September 1998 Mentioned & reproduced: p. 6 archive.org

Fliegel, Stephen N. Arms & Armor: The Cleveland Museum of Art. [Cleveland, Ohio]: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. Mentioned: P. 192, cat. no. 205

Cleveland Museum of Art, and Holger A. Klein. Sacred Gifts and Worldly Treasures: Medieval Masterworks from the Cleveland Museum of Art. Cleveland, Ohio: Cleveland Museum of Art, 2007. cat. 113, p. 296, 297

Eikelmann, Renate, Holger A. Klein, Stephen N. Fliegel, and Virginia Brilliant. The Cleveland Museum of Art: Meisterwerke von 300 bis 1550. München: Hirmer, 2007.

LaRocca, Donald J., et al. The Armorer's Art: Essays in Honor of Stuart Pyhrr. 2014. pp. 115-132

Exhibition history

Master Goldsmiths of the Renaissance: Their Models and Designs. The Cleveland Museum of Art, Cleveland, OH (organizer) (November 2, 1982-March 20, 1983).