The Monk Calf at Freiberg
From The Art and Popular Culture Encyclopedia
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| An illustration made its way to a Prague astrologer, who "discovered that the monster did indeed signify something terrible, indeed the most awful thing possible--[[Martin Luther]]." Luther himself responded quickly with a pamphlet containing a mock [[exegesis]] of the creature, ''Monk Calf'', in which the "Monk Calf" stands, in all its monstrosity, for the Catholic church. | An illustration made its way to a Prague astrologer, who "discovered that the monster did indeed signify something terrible, indeed the most awful thing possible--[[Martin Luther]]." Luther himself responded quickly with a pamphlet containing a mock [[exegesis]] of the creature, ''Monk Calf'', in which the "Monk Calf" stands, in all its monstrosity, for the Catholic church. | ||
| - | Luther's anti-papist pamphlet appeared together with a tract by [[Philipp Melanchthon]] which discussed a fictional monster, the [[Pope-Ass]], a hybrid between a man and a donkey supposedly found near Rome after the 1496 flood. Circulated in 1523, Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon's pamphlet was titled ''The Meaning of Two Horrific Figures, the Papal Ass at Rome and the Monk Calf Found at Freyberg in Meissen''. | + | Luther's anti-papist pamphlet appeared together with a tract by [[Philipp Melanchthon]] which discussed a fictional monster, the [[Pope-Ass]], a hybrid between a man and a donkey supposedly found near Rome after the 1496 flood. Circulated in 1523, Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon's pamphlet was titled ''[[The Meaning of Two Horrific Figures, the Papal Ass at Rome and the Monk Calf Found at Freyberg in Meissen]]''. |
| [[Lucas Cranach the Elder]] and his workshop provided the illustrations of the Papal Ass and the Monk Calf for the pamphlet. Variations of Luther and Melanchthon's pamphlet eventually were circulated, including one that depicted the Papal Ass and the Monk Calf in “an encounter between the two creatures. This opening page adds a new phrase to the title of the book: ‘with signs of the Day of Judgement.'" | [[Lucas Cranach the Elder]] and his workshop provided the illustrations of the Papal Ass and the Monk Calf for the pamphlet. Variations of Luther and Melanchthon's pamphlet eventually were circulated, including one that depicted the Papal Ass and the Monk Calf in “an encounter between the two creatures. This opening page adds a new phrase to the title of the book: ‘with signs of the Day of Judgement.'" | ||
Revision as of 14:35, 25 May 2024
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The Monk Calf (Das Munchkalb zu Freyberg) is a cartoon by Lucas Cranach the Elder published by Martin Luther.
Philip Melancthon, 'Deuttung der cwo grewlichen Figuren' (Wittenberg, 1523)
Background
A misshapen calf, born in Freiberg, Saxony, on 8 December 1522, quickly became important in the German Reformation. It was born with oddly shaped legs (its hind legs straight as a human's) and with a fold of skin over its head shaped like a cowl—hence its comparison to a monk.
An illustration made its way to a Prague astrologer, who "discovered that the monster did indeed signify something terrible, indeed the most awful thing possible--Martin Luther." Luther himself responded quickly with a pamphlet containing a mock exegesis of the creature, Monk Calf, in which the "Monk Calf" stands, in all its monstrosity, for the Catholic church.
Luther's anti-papist pamphlet appeared together with a tract by Philipp Melanchthon which discussed a fictional monster, the Pope-Ass, a hybrid between a man and a donkey supposedly found near Rome after the 1496 flood. Circulated in 1523, Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon's pamphlet was titled The Meaning of Two Horrific Figures, the Papal Ass at Rome and the Monk Calf Found at Freyberg in Meissen.
Lucas Cranach the Elder and his workshop provided the illustrations of the Papal Ass and the Monk Calf for the pamphlet. Variations of Luther and Melanchthon's pamphlet eventually were circulated, including one that depicted the Papal Ass and the Monk Calf in “an encounter between the two creatures. This opening page adds a new phrase to the title of the book: ‘with signs of the Day of Judgement.'"
See also
