Nis met een lege cartouche geflankeerd door de apostelen Petrus en Paulus 1593 - 1595

Wendel Dietterlin created this print, "Nis met een lege cartouche geflankeerd door de apostelen Petrus en Paulus," sometime in the late 16th century. Dominating the composition is the empty cartouche, flanked by Saint Peter and Saint Paul, two pillars of the early Church. Above the cartouche, we see symbols of authority—the bishop's mitre and a sword—intertwined with decorative flourishes. These symbols resonate across time, evoking power structures from both the earthly and divine realms. The sword, an age-old emblem of secular authority, mirrors similar symbols found in ancient Roman art, where it signified military strength and imperial power. Consider the symbolic weight of keys, held by Saint Peter, which have appeared in various forms throughout history, from ancient Near Eastern depictions of deities holding keys to city gates, to the medieval concept of the "keys to the kingdom of Heaven". They are a potent symbol, deeply ingrained in our collective memory and resonating subconsciously. The persistence of such iconography reveals a deep human need for symbols of authority, adapted and reinterpreted across ages. Dietterlin masterfully employs these recurring motifs, engaging viewers with an enduring, almost primal, sense of hierarchical order.