Serensissimus Princeps ac Dominus, Dominus Ernestus dux Saxoniae, Juliae, Cliviae et Montium, Landgravius Thuringiae, Marchio Misniae,

Title

Serensissimus Princeps ac Dominus, Dominus Ernestus dux Saxoniae, Juliae, Cliviae et Montium, Landgravius Thuringiae, Marchio Misniae,

Description

Portrait of Ernst the Pious, Duke of Saxe-Gotha.

ca. 1675

Artist

Sandrart (1630-1708)

Sandrart (1630- 1708) was a very productive engraver and artist. A total of over 400 copperplate engravings by him are known. In addition to his work for Nuremberg publishers (Endter, Felsecker), he also self-published illustrated works. He made a name for himself primarily as a portraitist of his contemporaries. Most of his engravings show more or less prominent contemporaries from Nuremberg. Sandrart was also the most expensive engraver in the city at his time; he was highly sought after for his realistic style of depiction. Many of these engravings were done in collaboration with the poet Sigmund von Birken, who wrote verses to accompany the portraits. He was good friends with Birken, and he also arranged commissions for him to work on artistically illustrated works. The Teutsche Academie der edlen Bau-, Bild- und Malereikünste of his uncle Joachim was conceived by him together with Birken.

Historical Description

Ernst I, the Pious ( 1601 - 1675 ) was descended from the Weimar branch of the Ernestine Wettins and had been Duke of Saxe-Gotha since 1640. By seizing a considerable part of the Duchy of Saxe-Altenburg, he founded the House of Saxe-Gotha-Altenburg in 1672. Ernst the Pious was an important ruler of his time who sought to repair the damage of the war through comprehensive reforms. In addition to the promotion of the elite with the founding of the Gotha Gymnasium (1524), the promotion of general basic education also took place through the School Methodus (1641), which institutionalized elementary education as the first independent school regulations written independently of the church. This was followed by the introduction of compulsory education, the establishment of an orphanage, the reorganization of the judiciary, and the state supervision of the health care system.