CREATING THE IMAGE OF THE KING: THE EARLY MODERN WOODCUT OF SIGISMUND AUGUSTUS FROM ‘CONFESSIO FIDEI’ BY STANISLAUS HOSIUS

Моя стаття присвячена деревориту із зображенням польського короля Сигізмунда ІІ Августа Яґеллона (1520-1572), а також імовірному авторству цієї ранньомодерної емблеми. Ця композиція з’являється в другому віденському виданні за 1560 р. «Визнання віри» авторства польського єпископа, а згодом кардинала Станіслава Гоз’юша (Stanislaus Hosius, Stanisław Hozjusz). Ця ж композиція наявна у віденському виданні 1561 року, однак відсутня у всіх подальших репринтах. У той же час, Національний музей у Кракові визначає походження цього деревориту з міста Майнц і датує 1557 роком, однак у наявних екземплярах видання 1557 року в Бібліотеці Чарторийських та Баварській бібліотеці в Мюнхені цей дереворит відсутній. У своїй статті я висвітлюю мистецькі особливості композиції даної емблеми – портрет короля, значення обрамлення його постаті династичними та територіальними гербами та аналізую і перекладаю текст 12рядкового вірша латинською мовою. Вірш пояснював успіхи Сигізмунда ІІ, по-перше, походженням його імені від давньоримського принцепса Октавіана Августа, а по-друге, вірністю короля Католицькій церкві. Враховуючи призначення Гоз’юша папським нунцієм до Відня у 1559 році, цілком імовірним вбачається безпосереднє залучення єпископа до творення образу польського короля, особливо враховуючи діяльність Гоз’юша на Контрреформаційній ниві в Європі. Здійснювалось це з подвійною метою: аби виконати своєрідну повчально-католицьку місію для Максиміліана ІІ Габсбурга, а також для промоції образу Сигізмунда Августа на міжнародній арені. У статті акцентується увага на античних ремінісценціях, до яких звертався автор, а також визначені можливі подальші напрямки досліджень рецепції античності (the classical reception) в контексті ранньомодерної Європи. Ключові слова: Сигізмунд Август, дереворит, образ короля, Станіслав Гоз’юш, Ренесанс, Контрреформація, Габсбурги

This particular type of emblem, when the poem was describing or deciphering its visual element, was called in Polish literature 'na obraz' or 'in effigiem', meaning 'symbolically' or 'after the image' (Borysowska 2014, pp. 153-154). In the scholarship, such type of emblem is closely knitted with the ekphrastic poems, deriving from ancient Greek and Roman poetry, in particular from The Iliad and The Odyssey. Its primary characteristic was its inspiration originating from an artwork, either imagined or real, hence it is a textual (verbal) description of the image that reveals the hidden senses. The investigated poem refers to this specific type of ekphrastic poetry: the author demonstrates his inspiration with the portrait of the King and other elements of the image.  The woodcut from the 1560 edition was only slightly considered in historiography. The primary attention was paid to the woodcuts of the kings from the sixteenth-century Polish chronicles, namely by Maciej Miechowita (1521), Marcin Kromer (1555), and Joachim Bielski (1597) (Chojecka 1970, pp. 37-38, 45;Ruszczycówna 1976, pp. 6-42). In the context of heraldic studies, this woodcut of Augustus is described as a 'portrait of Sigismund Augustus in the heraldic frame' and is compared with the German woodcuts from the sixteenth century (Pfeiffer 2002, pp. 30-32, 237). The images of the medieval Kings of Poland, Bohemia and Hungary are explored in a comparative manner in the recent study by Karolina Mroziewicz, yet she deliberately omits the Jagiellons and the Habsburgs in her research (Mroziewicz 2020).
It is impossible to examine the woodcut without analysis of the textual source it is attached to. Stanislaus Hosius's figure was perceived in the recent decades predominantly in the context of the Renaissance, Counter-Reformation and his devotion to the Catholic Church (Achremczyk, Guzowski & Jezierski 2005;Jurkowlaniec 2006;Williams 1981). These factors are widely emphasized when studying Hosius's literature legacy (Kalinowska 2004;Prokop 2008). Ultimately, this topic fits within the potestary imagology approach which studies the processes and implications of the creation of the ruler's (predominantly royal) image (Boytsov 2010, pp. 7-9;Kantorowicz 1957;Schmitt 2005;Vashchuk 2016).
Besides the depiction of the King and unlike the previous images of Sigismund Augustus in the Chronicles or other editions of 'Confessio fidei', the woodcut includes a 12-line Latin emblematic poem. It will be an integral object of my analysis as it develops intriguing comparisons of Sigismund Augustus and makes some hints regarding the purpose of the text.

Framing of the poem
Grove emphasizes that in the early modern emblems 'the imago serves a different purpose from modern illustration', thus the visual part of an emblem should be analysed from the sixteenth-century perspective (Grove 1996, p. 26). Sigismund is depicted with a long beard, a typical element of his images from the earlier and later periods (Widacka 2013, pp. 7, 9, 11). These portraits ( Fig.1 and Fig.2) depict him crowned, unlike the Mainz one (Fig. 3), where his crown is shown above the coats of arms and where Sigismund wears a fur hat. In the 1560 portrait, Augustus is wearing a royal garment with a fur coat on his shoulders, similar to the one from illustration 3.
The portrait of Sigismund Augustus from 1560 Vienna edition is surrounded by 25 coats of arms, however, the coats of arms are similarly surrounding the King's portrait in some thalers and medals of Sigismund I and Sigismund II 8 . Twenty-two of the coats of arms refer to the different provinces of the Polish Crown and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania. Three in the top of the page are the coats of arms of Lithuania, Poland and Sforza family (from the left to the right respectively). The order of the coats of arms, surrounding Augustus, is likewise interesting as it could be demonstrating the dynastical ties and origins of the King.
The first coat of arms in the top from the left is Lithuanian Pogoń (the Pursue). It depicts a rider on the horse holding the sword and the shield 9 . The shield explicitly demonstrates the Jagiellonian coat of arms -a 'double cross'. This part of the emblem could be symbolizing Augustus's father, Sigismund I the Old (Zygmunt Stary). The one from the right side (crowned snake, eating a child) is a family sign of the Sforza family: Augustus's mother was Bona Sforza d'Aragona from the powerful Milan family.
Thus, Augustus's coat of arms was allocated in the middle and it was the crowned Polish Eagle looking left with the initials of Sigismund Augustus: SA (Pokora 2017, pp. 698-700). His initials were frequently applied in the artworks, commissioned by or presented to Augustus, especially in the arrases, but also in the literature including Cracow 1553 edition of 'Confessio fidei' (Hennel-Bernasikowa & Piwocka 2017, pp. 380-496;Kuizinienė 2013;Piwocka 2008, p. 92;Pokora 2017, pp. 698, 700). It is possible that the conjunction of the two noble dynasties (the Jagiellons and Sforza) in one King (Sigismund Augustus) was reflected in his coat of arms and could, therefore, be perceived as the required for the emblems inscription. Since the coat of arms had Sigismund's initials, the inscription was expressed textually.
The Mainz portrait ( Fig. 3) demonstrates both Lithuanian and Polish coats of arms but with two essential distinctions. Pogoń does not possess explicitly presented Jagiellonian 'double cross' (the reader does not see the shield properly) and the Polish eagle is right-oriented. This leads to a reasonable suggestion that the two illustrations (from Mainz and Vienna) were created by different people and for different purposes. The Mainz one could be a tribute to the popular early modern German art because Sigismund I and his son commissioned own engravings and portraits predominantly from the German artists, e.g. Dürer and Cranach the Younger. The Mainz portrait did not serve any particular aim besides depicting Sigismund Augustus, yet it is the first image of Augustus, represented in 'Confessio fidei' as the Cracow 1553 edition (1506 I Cim at The Princes Czartoryski Library) lacks it.
On the contrary, the Vienna emblem endeavoured to represent Sigismund in a specific manner, underlining the territories under his control, royal origins and his features. It also implied some classical reminiscences and was edited as a grammatically correct Latin text. Undoubtedly, such an emblem could not emerge without specific request, and the text of the poem from the Vienna edition confirms this assumption.

The poem and the King's characteristics
The text of this emblematic poem is divided into six two-line verses 10 . It is inserted into the left side of the space formed by two straight rectangular columns while in the 1561 Vienna edition the text was allocated in the centre between the columns 11 . In the early modern emblems, the poems served the purpose of interpreting the image, so for the analysis it is necessary to translate the poem (Pelc 1973;Pelc 2002, pp. 22-23) 12 .
The Latin text of the poem is: Regius augusta depictus imagine vultus Iagelloniadis Principis ora refert.
It might be translated into English as: Replicated the face of the dignified Jagiellonian Princeps matches the sacred appearance.
The happy land is that, of how many people he masterfully rules, And protects the piety of his forces.
And for so long has been holding Mars away from the Sarmatian tribe, As he holds the peaceful sceptre with the king's hand. The poem has several accents. First of all, the author emphasizes the happiness of the citizens of the King's land guaranteed by the King's art of rule. Secondly, it is noted that the King keeps 'Mars away from the Sarmatian tribe' (the Poles), thus providing the country with peace. This work even might be defined as a brief poetic attempt of specula principum ('A Mirror for Princes'), a favoured Renaissance writing. Two other features are stressed by the author: the name of the King and his relations with God. These points I elaborate further.
The poem clearly specifies the association of Sigismund Augustus with ancient Roman princeps (emperor) Octavianus Augustus, a topic thoroughly explored in my Master thesis 13 . This identification was conducted via the resemblance between their names by employing the semantics. The first words, 'Regius augusta', give the hint whom this poem is describing. 'Augusta' might be decrypted variously, but it had specific significance for the maiestatis of Sigismund II.
Werner Eck argues that Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus was granted name Augustus as a cognomen and since the late third century it was transformed into a title (Eck 2007, p. 55). Interestingly, the line 'AUGUSTUS regni latius auget opes' used the semiotics of the word augere. The word augeo, auxi, auctus, augere is a Latin verb, meaning 'to increase, to enlarge, to strengthen or to expand', namely regarding territories, wealth, prosperity and honour (Lewis & Short 1879, p. 204). Consequently, the name of the Polish King (as well as the Roman princeps) is connected with the ideas of wealth, prosperity and (possibly) territorial enlargement (Lewis & Short 1879, p. 204). Another theory attaches the word auctor that is translated as 'the creator' or 'the leader' (conditor, princeps, dux as possible synonyms in Latin) sounding similar to the words with the root aug (Lewis & Short 1879, p. 198). Finally, Augustus might resemble the word auctoritas, translated as authority, power, influence, opinion, dignity, security or credibility (Lewis & Short 1879, p. 199).
The title Augustus became familiar for some European royal dynasties in the medieval period, primarily for the neighbours of the Kingdom of Poland -Emperors of the Holy Roman Empire. Augustus is noted in the title of Holy Roman Emperors since the ninth century -Romanorum Imperator Augustus. From the time of Henry II (1014-1024) in the title was applied the formula semper augustus, apparently meaning 'always blessed' or 'ever exalted' (Bryce 1901, p. 193;Wilson 2016, p. 33). In the sixteenth-century semper augustus was an integral part of the Emperor's title.
Valuable lines for the association with the ancient Roman Augustus are allocated in the middle of the poem: Dixeris Augustum merito: nam semper aviti / You call him Augustus deservedly: AUGUSTUS regni latius auget opes. / For he, like Augustus, increases the strength of the ancestral kingdom.
The author argues that Sigismund deserves his name and emphasizes Augustus with the capital letters. The lines directly hint towards Octavianus by mentioning 'AUGUSTUS regni latius'. While originally these lines refer to increasing the wealth of the kingdom of ancestors, they might 13 The comparisons between Octavianus Augustus and Sigismund Augustus are also noted in Stanisław Orzechowski's treatises and Jan Kochanowski's poems. I elaborate this point in my Master thesis 'The classical reception, symbolism and strengthening the King's power in early modern Poland (1548-1572)' that is expected to be published online in 2020 or 2021. be also read and perceived as 'Augustus, the King of Latins'. Once more the author employs the semantics of augere -to enlarge, to extend, to increase. The words starting with 'aug' are mentioned four times throughout the text while the poem does not mention the forename Sigismund (Sigismundus in Latin), only the name of the dynasty ('Iagelloniadis').
The other important reference to the antiquity comprises the Polish-Sarmatian ethnogenetic myth, especially disseminated in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, and mentions the ancient Roman god of war Mars (Borowski 2001;Grzybowski 1996;Orzeł 2010, pp. 149-151;Orzeł 2016, p. 29). The poem demonstrates how lasting the peaceful period is during the reign of Sigismund: it is Augustus who holds the 'sceptre with the king's hand'. Theoretically, it could be an attempt to present the reign of Augustus as the 'golden age', a popular historical topic in the medieval chronicles (Orzeł 2016, p. 29). During the sixteenth-century political struggles in Poland (the 1550s and 1560s were a period of the Executionist reform movement) this peaceful past was in particular idealized and emphasized (Orzeł 2016, p. 42).
The metaphors and figures applied in the poem hint to the background of the author who should be an educated person, aware of the Renaissance literature methods and, probably, personally acquainted with Sigismund Augustus. To investigate this issue from another perspective, I will focus on the printer of the book and then move on to the possible authorship.

Printer and author
The details about this emblem at the website of the National Museum in Cracow are scarce and, as I deduced earlier, most probably refer to another portrait. The date is mentioned as 1557, the place of production is Mainz, the Holy Roman Empire, yet the author is unknown as well as the name of the printer. Luckily, the latter was revealed 14 .
Michael Zimmerman was an Austrian publisher, active between 1553 and 1565 in Vienna (Mayer 1883, pp. 70-73). In the catalogue of the early modern Austrian prints, the woodcuts with Sigismund Augustus are connected with the editions of Stanislaus Hosius's 'Confessio fidei catholicae christiana' from 1560 and 1561 (Mayer 1883, pp. 72, 74). 'Confessio fidei' in the midsixteenth century was particularly well-known in Austria since 'one thousand and forty exemplars of the first edition (1560 -O.R.) were sold in the first few days' (Estreicher 1900, pp. 279-280;Kirby 2009, p. 376;Mayer 1883, p. 72). It could be possible that the emblem was adopted from an unknown for me source, perhaps even deriving from Mainz, but no other evidence exists.
The forewords from the Vienna editions hint to the figure of Stanislaus Hosius, the original author of 'Confessio fidei'. Hosius received durable attention from scholars, who noted that 'there is perhaps no greater name in the history of the Counter-Reformation' and described him as a 'faithful son of the Church and Poland's pride' and one of 'the pupils of Mars and the Muses' (Grabka 1946, p. 558;Matczak 1961, p. 60;Pfeiffer 2002, p. 201). Almost 60 years ago Sebastian Matczak briefly outlined the history of Hosius's diplomatic work, but this dimension of Hosius's activities should be investigated further on (Matczak 1961).
Hosius was persistently involved in the diplomatic affairs. In 1549-1550 the correspondence between Hosius and Sigismund II was conducted via encoded characters during the former's diplomatic work (Łepkowski 1850). In 1554 Augustus 'dispatched him to Albrecht of Prussia on another diplomatic mission, aiming at reaching an agreement in settling the relations between Poland and Pomerania'; fifteen years later Hosius was sent as an Ambassador of Poland to the Pope (Matczak 1961, p. 48-49). In the meantime, his activities were devoted to the promotion of the Counter-Reformation in Europe and in Poland in particular, but this does not suggest that Hosius could not simultaneously serve the interests of the Polish Kingdom.
In 1559 Hosius was appointed the apostolic nuncio ('legate to the imperial court') in Vienna (Matczak 1961, p. 49). His mission included two important aspects: to divert from Protestantism Maximilian II Habsburg, at that time the heir of Ferdinand I Habsburg, and to foster the conclusion of the Council of Trent, where the positions of Hosius were especially powerful (Matczak 1961, p. 49).
The figure of Maximilian provides us with some interesting insights into the religious situation in the lands under Habsburgs' control. During the reign of his father Ferdinand, the Protestants significantly strengthened their positions in the Holy Roman Empire. The growth of the importance of the Protestants during Ferdinand I and Maximilian II is likewise emphasized in literature (Ingrao 2000, pp. 27-28). The Papacy could not suffer the loss of one of the most influential Catholic dynasties, hence, the Pope required prompt steps and decisive arguments in favour of the Catholic faith. Hosius was an appropriate candidate, born in a family with German roots and experienced in cooperation with the Prussian Duke. In addition to his education in Bologna, this background would let the bishop easily establish the contacts with a 'faithful to the model of the Christian prince' Maximilian (Berenger 2013, p. 234;Hozjusz 1988, p. XXXI).
This task of the apostolic nuncio could be implemented via the creation, publishing, and dissemination of an emblem where King Sigismund Augustus was represented as the faithful Catholic, an example or a challenge to be followed by Maximilian. Of course, the emblem itself could not change Maximilian's beliefs in a moment. Instead, it rather applied both didactic and rivalry elements: to demonstrate how prosperous is the neighbour King of Poland. Could Hosius somehow encourage Maximilian to follow this example in order to overcome Sigismund in his piety? This didactic element was emphasized in the last two lines of the poem, making them the most essential fragments of the poem: Non humana creat tales prudentia motus, / And it is not him doing such wise human actions, Cor sed enim Regis dirigit omne Deus. / But God himself is ruling the royal heart. By this statement, the author draws a conclusion: all previous achievements of the King would not become possible without following the divine instructions. Moreover, obedience to the Catholic faith, although not mentioned precisely, is presented as an integral element of the successful ruler. The text was thus oriented on someone who required assurance of the benefits of proper Catholic life. More importantly, the new edition of a famous Counter-Reformation book was oriented on someone, who adored collecting them.
On the 23d July 1560, Maximilian Habsburg wrote a letter to Herzog Christoph von Württemberg where he thanked for the presented books, written by Friedrich Staphylus (a sixteenth-century German Catholic theologian) and Stanislaus Hosius (Fig. 4) 15 . Maximilian responds to the Herzog's letter from the 17th of June 1560 that had also 'the added exemplars of the books by Staphylus and Hosius' and thanks 'for that friendly and lovely present' (Le Bret 1785, pp. 185-186). Hosius's book is in the centre of Maximilian's attention: 'I do not want to hide that I have so much understood from Hosius, as he told that he prepared such a book to get in the hands and to read, as he has told us, and that there are so many things shown to him that he should have written, of which he had never thought in his mind. I wanted to start a conversation with  him, but we immediately dispensed with it' (Le Bret 1785, pp. 185-186) 16 . Unfortunately, there is no mention about the woodcut or Sigismund's representation, but at least it is known about Maximilian's acquaintance with Hosius's work and Maximilian could promptly receive the second Vienna edition with the studied emblem. Interestingly, although in 1560 'Confessio fidei' was for the first time translated in German, the emblem with Augustus was inserted in the Latin edition (Hozjusz 1988, p. XLVI). The crucial question is whether Hosius could be an author of the poem and the emblem. The period of his mission in Vienna is, probably, the strongest argument in favour of this hypothesis, albeit it is not the only one. The forewords of the second 1560 and the 1561 editions are almost identical with a small exception: while Hosius was mentioned as the author of the former's preface, the latter was titled 'Author Lectori' ('An experienced reader'), and the title could be amended on the request of Hosius. The tasks of Hosius's mission in Vienna, the authorship of the forewords of these editions, the changes in the 1561 foreword, and the religious situation in the Habsburg lands along with Maximilian's interests also confirm my assumption. Furthermore, Hosius was an author of several other poems and epigrams that were frequently concerning Church affairs, though not exclusively (Hozjusz 1988, pp. LVI-LVII, 136-137).
What implications could this emblem, unknown beyond these two editions of Hosius's work, make?
Firstly, Hosius demonstrated to an educated Maximilian the glory of a neighbour Catholic King. Secondly, Hosius simultaneously promoted the idea that God resides only in the hearts of faithful rulers, thus adhering to the Catholic faith is presented as an essential path for the future emperor. Finally, it could be an attempt to demonstrate Hosius's loyalty to the Polish King and Sigismund Augustus could likewise benefit from this disseminated representation.
The arguments are supported by the notion that the Habsburgs similarly applied the Classical motives in their visual and literature propaganda, so the emblem would be perceived by them as it was intended (Copeland 2016, p. 167;Torlone, Munteanu & Dutsch 2017, pp. 26, 80, 116-117). The close relationship between the Habsburgs and the Jagiellons was strengthened by the family ties: Catherine of Austria, the third wife of Sigismund II, belonged to the Habsburgs and was a sister of his first wife -Elizabeth of Austria. Therefore, I assume that Hosius's introduction of an emblem with Sigismund Augustus was an element of accomplishing his mission in Vienna. The main reader of the new Vienna edition could be Maximilian II Habsburg, albeit the work was not dedicated to him, but to Sigismund II Jagiellon. This means that the created image of the Polish King and dedication to Augustus raised a challenge for Maximilian II rather than was perceived as a conviction about the strength of Sigismund and the necessity of obedience to God and the Catholic Church.

Conclusions
The study of the emblem which for the first time appeared in the second 1560 edition of 'Confessio catholicae fidei christiana' in Vienna and was once again repeated in the next year reprint demonstrates its particular significance for the Counter-Reformation processes in Europe, Habsburg-Jagiellon relations and the royal propaganda in early modern Europe. Besides the Counter-Reformation dimension, these two editions gained a strong royal propaganda element.
The structure of the emblem is, in fact, a brief history of Sigismund Augustus's reign. It encompasses his genealogy (the Jagiellons and Sforza family), the territories controlled and his experience of governing. Sigismund's name (cognomen) Augustus is represented as the deserved element of his political biography as he enlarges the state and its wealth; it also states a clear association with ancient Roman princeps Octavianus Augustus. Moreover, the success of the King is grounded in his obedience to God and the visual framing of the poem together with the Latin poem 'grants it the features of exceptional splendour' (Ruszczycówna 1976, p. 110).
The authorship of the emblem in my opinion belongs to Stanislaus Hosius, the author of 'Confessio fidei' and an accomplished neo-Latin poet (Hozjusz 1988, pp. LVI-LVII). This assumption is proved by the fact that Hosius was appointed as the apostolic nuncio to the imperial court in 1559, executing his mission in Vienna in the following years. He agreed on the publication with Michael Zimmerman, and after the rapid success of the first 1560 edition perhaps decided to introduce a specific emblem, intended specifically for Maximilian II Habsburg, a celebrated bibliophile, who already in 1560 received one of the recent prints.
The emblem of Sigismund Augustus is important for the royal imagology in the early modern era. The image of the Polish King was especially crucial during the Executionist reform movement in Poland, which flourished during the late 1550s and early 1560s. Further research should be undertaken to investigate the reception of the emblem and the text, particularly by the Habsburgs, the sources of Hosius's inspiration and the correlation of this emblem with Sigismund Augustus's image in the 1560s. Such enquiry would stress the difference between the imagology of the Jagiellons and the Habsburgs, especially considering the thought that their images were 'not as radically polarized in the neighbouring kingdoms as that of the Přemyslids, Angevins and Luxembourgs' (Mroziewicz 2020, p. 29).