Christoph Maucher

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“ Cimon and Pero ” by Christoph Maucher, Danzig around 1690, amber. Würth Collection
"Hercules as conqueror of the Lernaean Hydra and the Nemaic Lion", before 1695, ivory. Bode Museum Berlin

Christoph Maucher (born October 24, 1642 in Schwäbisch Gmünd ; † 1706 , probably in Danzig ) was an amber and ivory cutter . He was born as the fifth son of Catharina and Georg Maucher in Schwäbisch Gmünd. One of his brothers is Johann Michael Maucher , who has also achieved a high reputation and was also active as an amber and ivory carver.

Career

Christoph Maucher began his apprenticeship at the age of 12. In 1667 he took up a nine-month activity at the court of Karl Eusebius von Liechtenstein , during which he "diligently carved stones". Around 1670 Maucher moved to Danzig for reasons that are not known to us, but probably because his younger brother Johann Michael already held a "certain leadership role" at that time . Here he was initially believed to work for the Gdańsk amber Dreher Master Nicholas Turow, which existed a significant contract for the production of a large amber chair with rich ivory decoration at this time of a gift from the Great Elector of Emperor I. Leopold should be. It was not until 1684 that the City Council of Danzig allowed him to produce sculptural works; against the will of the guild of amber artisans in Gdansk in 1685 the permit was extended to the production of amber objects. The abundance of orders, well documented by sources, which Maucher subsequently received from Gdansk and also from foreign clients, indicate his high artistic reputation, but also suggest that he must have employed journeymen in his workshop, at least temporarily.

Works by Christoph Maucher

Numerous works of art made of ivory and amber , which are attributed to Christoph Maucher, are in collections of well-known museums (including in London, Vienna, Berlin, Dresden, Modena), including the figurative representations made of amber The Judgment of Paris (of which there are several versions there) and The Triumph of Perseus (both in the Victoria and Albert Museum London ). However, it is controversial whether all of the works of art attributed to Christoph Maucher were actually created by his hand or merely come from his workshop. The only secured by signature work of Christoph Maucher is made of ivory and ebony crafted apotheosis Emperor Leopold I (often abbreviated as Vienna Apotheosis hereinafter) which is now owned by the Kunsthistorisches Museum in Vienna is.

During his lifetime Christoph Maucher was accused of basing his fame on the work of people he employed in his workshop (which was not allowed at the time). Among other things, this was the reason for the complaints that the guild of amber craftsmen in Gdansk brought against Maucher several times, albeit mostly unsuccessfully, to the city council of Gdansk. More recent art-historical research results, however, suggest that Christoph Maucher was the direct authorship of most of the works ascribed to him.

literature

  • Antoni Romuald Chodyński: The structural and decorative function of ivory in Gdańsk amber works of art in the 17th and 18th centuries. In: Amber - views - opinions. Gdańsk 2006 (first publication of the article in 2003). ISBN 83-912894-1-9 .
  • Angelika Ehmer: The Maucher. A family of craftsmen from the 17th century from Schwäbisch Gmünd . Published by the Schwäbisch Gmünd city archive . Einhorn-Verlag Eduard Dietenberger, Schwäbisch Gmünd 1992, ISBN 3-927654-27-2 (plus dissertation, University of Freiburg i. Br. 1989; review )
  • Kerstin Hinrichs: Bernstein, the "Prussian gold" in art and natural history chambers and museums from the 16th to 20th centuries. Century . Dissertation, Humboldt University Berlin 2010 ( full text )
  • Walter Klein : Johann Michael & Christoph Maucher, two baroque ivory carvers from Gmünd. Ed. V Kunstgewerblichen Verein Vorwärts. Schwäbisch Gmünd 1920.
  • Otto Pelka: Amber. Berlin 1920 ( full text ).

Web links

Commons : Christoph Maucher  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c A. Ehmer: The Maucher. Schwäbisch Gmünd 1992.
  2. ↑ a b A.R. Chodyħsky: Sketches on amber. From regal privilege of the Teutonic Knights to Maucherian masterpiece. In: Amber - views - opinions. Gdaħsk 2006. ISBN 83-912894-1-9 , pp. 138-141.
  3. ↑ a b K. Hinrichs: Bernstein, the “Prussian Gold” in art and natural history chambers and museums of the 16th – 20th centuries. Century . Dissertation, Humboldt University Berlin 2010 ( full text ).
personal data
SURNAME Maucher, Christoph
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German amber and ivory cutter
DATE OF BIRTH October 24, 1642
PLACE OF BIRTH Schwäbisch Gmünd
DATE OF DEATH 1706
Place of death uncertain: Danzig