Artwork
Saurman, Albert
Saurman, Albert is an unspecified painting by Rudolf (czynny we Wrocławiu 1933-1947), fot. Jagusch. It dates from 1945 and is held in the collection of the Library of the Wroclaw University. The work is a portrait bust of Albert Saurman, rendered within a vertical oval format.
About this work
Overview
The work is a portrait bust of Albert Saurman, rendered within a vertical oval format. Executed as a paper print measuring roughly 21 by 17 centimeters, it reproduces an earlier oil painting from the mid‑17th century. The image is framed by a coat of arms in the lower left and bears several inscriptions that identify the sitter and his official capacities.
Subject & Meaning
Albert Saurman served as starost of the Duchy of Wrocław during the years 1541–1542. The accompanying legend at the top records his title and the dates of his tenure, while the lower caption names him as "Capit. Vratisl."—a reference to his role as a capitular in the city of Wrocław. The portrait thus functions as a commemorative record of his brief administrative service.
Technique & Style
The image is a paper print derived from a common negative, reproducing the composition of an earlier oil portrait.
The image is a paper print derived from a common negative, reproducing the composition of an earlier oil portrait. The original oil work, dated to the middle of the 17th century, would have employed the conventional portrait conventions of the period: a restrained pose, a solemn expression, and heraldic devices that signal status. The print retains these visual elements, though rendered in monochrome on a modestly sized sheet.
History & Provenance
The print bears a back seal indicating it was photographed by R. Jagusch in Breslau, and it is catalogued under inventory number 7281. This suggests the image was produced as part of a 20th‑century effort to document historic portraits held in regional collections. The original oil painting from which it is copied is not presently displayed, but its existence is recorded through this reproduction.
Context
Portrait busts of local officials were common in the early modern lands of Silesia, serving both as visual affirmations of authority and as decorative elements in civic or ecclesiastary settings. The inclusion of a coat of arms and precise dates aligns with the period’s emphasis on heraldic identification and chronological documentation.
Artist & collection
Artist
Rudolf (czynny we Wrocławiu 1933-1947), fot. Jagusch
Rudolf Jagusch worked in Wrocław between 1933 and 1947. He made photographs of city scenes and portraits during those years. His surviving prints show shopfronts, street corners, and local figures in black-and-white.…
