Our Collection of Old Masters is one of the most important of its kind in Germany and offers visitors the opportunity to explore the history of European painting of the highest quality – from the Middle Ages to 1800. Our rich collection of Dutch and Flemish masters from the ‘Golden Age’ is particularly famous. Works by Vermeer, Rembrandt, Rubens, Giorgione, Palma Vecchio, Veronese, Rigaud, Boucher and Adam Elsheimer have attracted art lovers from around the world to our Museum.
The painting gallery was created by Duke Anton Ulrich of Brunswick during the Baroque period and his personal taste is still in evidence.
The medieval altarpieces from the 14th and 15th centuries are exhibited in Dankwarderode Castle as part of the medieval collection. The altarpieces are mainly of North German and Lower Saxon origin, but also include an outstanding diptych from the atelier of Geertgen tot Sint Jans.
Pleas note: The Dankwarderode castle is closed until further notice.
Niccolo di Pietro Gerini (Werkstatt), Madonna mit Kind umgeben von Engeln, um 1385-90
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
In 1838 ten Florentine devotional images from the late 14th and 15th centuries were acquired from the Brunswick painter Carlo Bäse. These precious devotional pictures on gold ground evoke the luminous aura of medieval church interiors. A tournament scene hints at the transition to post-medieval secular panel painting.
Mariotto di Nardo, Christus vor Pilatus, um 1405-1410
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Lorenzo Monaco, Die Heiligen Stephanus, Franziskus, Domenikus, Laurentius, um 1400
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Lucas Cranach d.Ä., Herkules bei Omphale, 1537
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
The Old German department of our museum is dominated by Lucas Cranach and his atelier. Familiar pictorial themes such as “Adam and Eve”, “Venus” and portraits can be seen alongside large-scale history paintings. Works by Hans Holbein, Christoph Amberger and above all the Brunswick painter Ludger Tom Ring complement the collection.
Hans Holbein d. J., Bildnis des Braunschweiger Kaufmanns Cyriakus Kale, 1533
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Ludger Tom Ring d.J., Selbstbildnis, 1547
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Braunschweiger Monogrammist (Jan van Amstel?), Das Gleichnis vom Großen Gastmahl, um 1535
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
At the center of our “Early Netherlandish” section is the “Large Banquet”. As the monogram on this work is indecipherable, the painter is referred to as the “Brunswick Monogrammist”. He was a direct precursor of Pieter Bruegel the Elder. This fact has assured him a lasting and important role in the history of art. A self-portrait by Lucas van Leyden is another highlight of this collection.
Lucas van Leyden, Selbstbildnis, um 1525/30
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Willem Key, Mars und Venus überrascht von Vulkan, Mitte 16. Jahrhundert
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Peter Paul Rubens, Judith mit dem Haupt des Holofernes, um 1616/18
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, B.P. Keiser
Flemish Baroque painting is represented with an unusually large number of high-quality works. The major master painters such as Rubens, Van Dyck, Cornelis de Vos, David Teniers II and works from the Frans Francken workshop are each represented with several works. Josse de Momper’s “Four Seasons” series and Rubens’ sensual “Judith” are among the main highlights.
Cornelis de Vos, Allegorie der Vergänglichkeit, Ende 1620er Jahre
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Josse de Momper d.J. und Jan Brueghel d.Ä., Der Sommer, um 1612/15
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Daniel Seghers, Blumenstück mit einer Marienfigur in einer Steinnische, um 1645/55
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Rembrandt Harmensz. van Rijn, Familienbild, um 1665-1668
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Duke Anton Ulrich already bought his paintings mainly in Amsterdam, which was the leading art market at that time. Dutch works are therefore a focal point of the collection – not just because of their sheer number, but above all because of their exquisite quality. Among Rembrandt’s five works, his late “Family Portrait” is the most important. Its international renown is rivalled only by Jan Vermeer’s “Girl with a wine glass”.
Gerard van Honthorst, Der Soldat und das Mädchen, um 1621
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Johannes Vermeer van Delft, The Girl with the Wine Glass, around 1658/59
© Herzog Anton Urich-Museum
Jan Steen, Hochzeit von Tobias und Sara, um 1667
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Adam Elsheimer, Morgenlandschaft (Aurora), um 1608/10
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
As one of the leading German Baroque collections we offer a vast overview of this period. Dutch, Italian and French influences combine to form a polyphonic concert of different styles. Adam Elsheimer’s morning landscape “Aurora”, which was already praised by Goethe, is among the milestones of European landscape painting.
Hans von Aachen, Die drei Grazien, um 1604
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Christoph Bernhard Francke, Bildnis des Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz, um 1695
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Johann Heinrich Roos, Selbstbildnis, 1682
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Abraham Mignon, Blumenstrauss mit Distelblättern, um 1670/75
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Jacob Philipp Hackert, Italienische Landschaft, 1793
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Rosina de Gasc, Selbstbildnis, 1767
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Giorgio da Castelfranco, gen. Giorgione, Selbstbildnis als David, um 1508/10
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Works from Venice and Rome, from the Renaissance to the Baroque, are the focal point of our Italian collection. Duke Anton Ulrich’s numerous sojourns in Venice brought about the foundation of a collection of the main masters of the Venetian school. Among these works is the famous self-portrait of the mysterious Giorgio da Castelfranco, better known as Giorgione.
Paolo Caliari, gen. Veronese, Taufe Christi, um 1548
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Orazio Gentileschi, Dornenkrönung Christi, um 1610/15
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Rosso Fiorentino, Sterbende Kleopatra, um 1525/30
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Nicolas de Largillière, Konrad Detlef von Dehn, 1724
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum, Claus Cordes
Duke Anton Ulrich and officials at the Brunswick court had themselves portrayed by the French court painters Rigaud and Largillerre as French courtly culture was regarded as its leading model. A little later, the charming works by François Boucher and Jean-Baptiste Greuze were created. They reflect the ‘galant’ attitude towards life among the French aristocracy of the 18th century.
Hyacinthe Rigaud, Herzog Anton Ulrich von Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel, um 1702
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
François Boucher, Die heimliche Botschaft, 1767
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Hyacinthe Rigaud, Bildnis des Grafen Konrad Detlef von Dehn, 1723
© Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Email s.gatenbroecker@3landesmuseen.de
Phone +49 531 1225-2405
Fax +49 531 1225-2408
Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Museumstr. 1
38100 Braunschweig
Email bildarchiv.haum@lists.3landesmuseen.de
Phone +49 531 1225-2401
Fax +49 531 1225-2408
Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum
Museumstr. 1
38100 Braunschweig