Page:History of the German people at the close of the Middle Ages vol1.djvu/236

 224 HISTORY OF THE GERMAN PEOPLE of danger and distress. The woman sits sunk in deep thought, her look wandering far away, her countenance expressive of the bitterest sorrow. The three pictures are symbolic of different periods of thought in Germany. While the first two represent the soul fighting and working for good, the first and real object of life, still upheld and strengthened by a. firm faith, the third symbolises an age of presumption, when man sought to fathom the mysteries of life and Nature by his own intelligence, and is in despair at finding himself so often foiled. As if to soften the im- pression of the whole, the artist introduces the rainbow which spans the horizon. Not one among Diirer's numerous pupils and fol- lowers came near to him, ' the prince of wood and copper engravers,' in his combination of seriousness and humour, in exuberance and depth of imagination, although several of them, such as Hans Schauffelin, Albrecht Altdorfer, Heinrich Aldegrever, Hans Sebald, and Beham, reached a high pitch of technical ability. Many of his later followers forsook the grandly simple German style, and fell into stiff mannerisms. It is impossible not to recognise that success in the art of engraving was influenced by the decrease or in- crease of faith and patriotism. As soon as the old traditions began to be despised, the forms and practices of religion neglected, originality of conception waned, and by degrees art fell into coarse realism. As a proof of this we may cite Lucas Cranach, born in 1472, who is the best known of Diirer's followers, and who intro- duced his methods into Saxony. His earliest pictures, belonging to the period between 1504 to 1509, are per- meated by deep earnestness, simplicity, and humour,