The Standard Bearer
c. 1500
Albrecht Dürer German, 1471-1528
Germany
Dürer’s iconic standard bearer hoists a flag emblazoned with diagonally crossed branches and double fire steels in the shape of the letter B, for the French region of Burgundy. These symbols suggest he is an infantry soldier fighting Italy or France for Maximilian I, the Burgundian ruler and Holy Roman emperor, later Dürer’s patron. With skintight hose, a fabric codpiece, slashed sleeves, jaunty feathers, and an antagonistically raised eyebrow, he defies any attempt to capture his flag.
Engraving in black on ivory laid paper