Page - 431 - in Jacopo Strada and Cultural Patronage at the Imperial Court - The Antique as Innovation, Volume 1

431The Neugebäude 9.1 The Tomb of Ferdinand i and Anna in Prague; Licinio’s Paintings in Pressburg While in the act of drawing his proposals for the Munich Antiquarium, Strada appears to have been quite busy with other concerns. It is likely that these con- cerns included important commissions from his principal patron, the Emperor Maximilian ii [Fig. 9.1], who had been heard to express himself rather dis- satisfied with Strada’s continued occupation for his Bavarian brother-in-law. Already two year earlier, when Duke Albrecht had ‘borrowed’ Strada from the Emperor to travel to Italy to buy antiquities and works of art and to advise him on the accommodation for his collections, Maximilian had conceded this with some hesitation, telling the Duke that he could not easily spare Strada, whom he employed in several projects.1 Unfortunately Maximilian did not specify what projects these were. They certainly included the tomb for his parents in St Vitus’ Cathedral in Prague, that was to be executed by Alexander Colin, and for which Strada had been sent to Prague already in March of 1565 [Figs. 9.2–9.3]. As with his earlier in- volvement in the completion of the tomb of Maximilian i in Innsbruck, his role is not specified, but in both cases it probably included specific advice on Imperial iconography as well as more general artistic expertise.2 Strada’s advice may have been sought likewise on the decoration of the Castle at Pressburg/Bratislava, which functioned as Royal residence in Hungary since 1 ‘So fil den Strada betrift, wiewol ich sainer in etzlichen sachen nit wol geraten khan, wie dem awer allen, so will ich flais furwenden, damit ich ine E[uer] L[iebden] mit den ehisten möge zueschiken’; Doc. 1566-11-18; cited in Von Busch 1973; cf. Lietzmann 1987, pp. 115–116. 2 Doc. 1565-03-28; on the Maximiliangrab, cf. above, Ch. 6.2. Figures 9.2–9.3 Alexander Colin, Tomb of Emperor Ferdinand i, his consort Anna of Hungary and their son, Emperor Maximilian ii, 1565–83; Prague, St Vitus Cathedral; details showing the effigy of Maximilian ii and a medallic portrait of King Wenceslaus iv.