The Reformers Luther and Hus Giving Communion to the Princes of the House of Saxony 

Lucas Cranach the Elder created this woodcut, "The Reformers Luther and Hus Giving Communion to the Princes of the House of Saxony," to advance the cause of the Reformation. Cranach was a court painter to the Electors of Saxony, staunch supporters of Martin Luther. This image collapses time and space to connect the early reformer Jan Hus with Martin Luther in their shared defiance of papal authority. Luther and Hus are depicted administering communion to the Princes, emphasizing the importance of lay participation, and perhaps suggesting that religious authority derives as much from the people as from the Church. The setting and the inclusion of the Saxon princes underscores how regional politics and patronage were deeply interwoven with the Reformation’s success. Cranach visually articulates a religious and political stance, linking the spiritual with the secular in a way that would have resonated deeply with the reformers and their followers.