Jost Amman, “Military Engineer Holding a Shovel”, 1573

Jost Amman (aka Jost Ammon) (1539–1591)

“Military Engineer Holding a Shovel” (aka “Militair bij een ommuurd tentenkamp”; “Soldier at a walled tent camp”; "Scha[n]tzmeisters Besoldung”; “Treasurer's Salary”), 1573, woodcut illustration to volume 5 of Leonhard Fronsperger’s  (aka Leonhardt Fronsberger) (c.1520–1575) “Kriegsbuch” (War book), published in Frankfurt am Main in 1573 by Sigmund Feyerabend (aka Sigismund Feyrabend; Sigmund Feierabend) (1528–1590), page XLVI (46) (see https://play.google.com/books/reader?id=XoJfAAAAcAAJ&pg=GBS.PR45-IA1&hl=en). 

Woodcut; printed from two blocks and with letterpress text recto and verso printed on fine laid paper with full margins as published.

Size: (sheet) 31.3 x 19.9 cm

Andresen 226-46r (Andreas Andresen 1872–78, “Der deutschen Peintre-Graveur oder die deutschen Maler als Kupferstecher, nach ihrem Leben und ihren Werken, von dem letzten Drittel des 16. Jahrhunderts bis zum Schluss des 18. Jahrhunderts”, vol. 1, Leipzig, pp. 360–70, cat. no. 226).

See also the description of this print offered by the Rijksmuseum and Brown University Library: http://hdl.handle.net/10934/RM0001.COLLECT.47827 & https://repository.library.brown.edu/studio/item/bdr:239209/.

The letterpress text below the image is interesting as it explains one of the titles for this woodcut, “Treasurer's Salary” ("Scha[n]tzmeisters Besoldung”):

(Transl.) “Item / of the armoury master's office / a captain's salary belongs to him / that is / forty guilders / and he is supposed to keep two satellites / he has four mercenaries / make a total of 56 guilders.”

The text following the second heading (verso) is equally interesting ("Schantzmeisters Besoldung”):

(Transl.) “Item / the chief's salary is one month forty gold / captain's pay / for a fine boy one pay / two satellites four pay / if he wants to keep one or two horses to his own / that belongs to him / but that the same as in charge / with the royals The muster consists of and has to be used / in all the way like other stuff servants / they are entitled to a month of twenty guilders for their salary / that makes in total / a month of 80 guilders belongs to the supervisor.”

Condition: a strong and well-printed early/lifetime impression (based on the impression showing no signs of wear to the printing plate) with the surrounding letterpress text (recto and verso) and full margins as published. The sheet in an excellent (near pristine) condition for its considerable age with no tears, holes, folds, abrasions or significant stains.

I am selling this outstanding double-sided leaf featuring a woodcut of a military engineer bearing a shovel on his shoulder with artillery fortifications in the background— for AU$271 in total (currently/approximately US$180.52/ EUR166.28/ GBP141.64 at the time of this listing) including Express Mail (EMS) postage and handling to anywhere in the world, but not (of course) any import duties/taxes imposed by some countries. Note that payment is in Australian dollars (AU$271) as this is my currency.

If you are interested in purchasing this amazing German woodcut from the late Renaissance, please contact me (oz_jim@printsandprinciples.com) and I will send you a PayPal invoice to make the payment easy.

This leaf has been sold