Philipp Hainhofer
Philipp Hainhofer | |
|---|---|
| Born | Error: Invalid birth date for calculating age Augsburg, Holy Roman Empire |
| Died | 1647 |
| Occupation(s) | Merchant, banker, diplomat, art collector |
| Years active | Early 17th century |
| Known for | Crafting Kunstschränke (curiosity cabinets), diplomatic service for Duke Philip II of Pomerania |
Philipp Hainhofer (21 July 1578 – 1647) was a prominent Augsburg-based merchant, banker, diplomat, and collector of art, best known for crafting elaborate Kunstschränke (curiosity cabinets) in collaboration with numerous artisans from Augsburg.
He pursued legal studies at the Universities of Siena and Padua and undertook extensive travels throughout Italy, Germany, and the Netherlands, where he developed proficiency in languages and deepened his knowledge of art. In 1605, Hainhofer became a member of Augsburg's senate and acted as a political correspondent for several notable figures, including the King of France, the Margrave of Baden, and most prominently Duke Philip II of Pomerania. Serving as the Duke’s representative, he was responsible for procuring artworks and assembling the distinguished Pommerscher Kunstschrank (Pomeranian curiosity cabinet) between approximately 1610 and 1617, personally delivering it in 1617. Unfortunately, the cabinet’s main structure was destroyed during the Berlin bombing campaign near the conclusion of World War II. Additionally, he is credited with creating the first cuckoo clock in Germany’s Black Forest region.
Hainhofer’s diplomatic engagements on behalf of Philip of Pomerania and other nobility enabled him to expand his art acquisitions, resulting in the production of further curiosity cabinets. In 1632, he gifted one such cabinet from Augsburg to King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden; this particular piece remains the best preserved and is exhibited at the Museum Gustavianum of Uppsala University. Another cabinet crafted for Augustus, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg is part of the collection at the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. Beyond his work with cabinets, Hainhofer compiled Das Große Stammbuch, an album amicorum containing autographs from prominent European figures, which is currently preserved at the Herzog August Library in Wolfenbüttel.
References
- Oscar Doering, Biography in Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie, Bd 49, p. 719.
Further reading
- Christian Häutle, Die Reisen des Augsburger Philipp Hainhofer nach Eichstädt, München und Regensburg in den Jahren 1611, 1612 und 1613, Zeitschrift des Historischen Vereins für Schwaben und Neuburg, 1881, Vol. 8, pp. 1–316.
- Jochen Brüning & Friedrich Niewöhner (eds.), Augsburg in der Frühen Neuzeit. Beiträge zu einem Forschungsprogramm (1995)
External links
- Detailed presentation and images of the cabinet created for Duke August of Brunswick-Lüneburg at the Rijksmuseum.
- Information on The Augsburg Art Cabinet, focusing on the Uppsala piece.
- The King's Kunstkammer, a Danish exhibition featuring Renaissance art and curiosity cabinets (English).
- Pommerscher Kunstschrank
- J. Paul Getty Museum Augsburg Cabinet: interactive 3-D model with high-resolution images and material analysis.
- Pages with script errors
- Articles with short description
- Age error
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- 1578 births
- 1647 deaths
- Merchants from the Holy Roman Empire
- Bankers from the Holy Roman Empire
- Businesspeople from Augsburg
- German bankers
- German diplomats
- University of Siena alumni
- University of Padua alumni