The Third Tournament with Lances

Artist Lucas Cranach the Elder (German, 1472–1553)

Date1509

Mediumwoodcut on cream laid paper

Dimensionsimage, with border: 29.1 × 41.7 cm (11 7/16 × 16 7/16 in.)
sheet: 31 × 44 cm (12 3/16 × 17 5/16 in.)

ClassificationsPrints

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Terms

Object number1935.153

Label TextTournaments took various forms, each with its own rules and equipment. Cranach’s woodcut of massed jousting condenses the contestants for dramatic effect, but he accurately captures both the equipment and intensity of this high-impact sport. The jousters are equipped for a “joust of war,” using battlefield armor supplemented by reinforcing pieces like those in the nearby open-storage display. The armor in the center of this gallery is for a version of the “joust of peace,” in which the jouster wore a more protective and restrictive suit of armor.

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