Germaanse veldheer Arminius kust voor de heilige eik een verwonde schildknaap 1782

Daniel Nikolaus Chodowiecki made this print, ‘Germanic Commander Arminius Kisses a Wounded Shield-Bearer Before the Sacred Oak’, sometime in the 18th century. It depicts a scene of veneration, but also of recuperation and healing in a natural setting. The sacred oak is adorned with medallions, portraits, and other votive objects, suggesting it is a site of pilgrimage and the focus of shared cultural memory. Chodowiecki was a German artist active in a period when Germany, as a nation-state, was still in the process of formation. We see in this print a burgeoning interest in German identity and history. Chodowiecki, who taught at the Berlin Academy of Arts, was deeply engaged in the project of defining Germanness in both historical and cultural terms. Examining other works by Chodowiecki, or consulting histories of the Berlin Academy, might further illuminate the social and institutional contexts of this image. In doing so, we might better understand the public role of art in shaping and reflecting cultural values.