ABSTRACT
As long distance trade in the early modem period included a vast range of items, the concept of art and artifacts was a very broad one. It covered not only contemporary paintings, drawings and sculptures, but referred to antiquities, coins, medals, and exotic artifacts as well. In his catalogue of 1565 for the 'Kunst-und Wunderkammer' of Duke Albrecht V of Bavaria, the Theatrum amplissimum, Samuel von Quiccheberg included a huge variety of items. Therefore the colophons referred to a promptuarium artificiosarum miraculosarumque rerum, ac omnis ran thesauri et pretiosae supellectilis, structurae atque picturae? The form and material of the artistic object were not important for the organisation of the 'Wunderkammer'.10 Therefore, Quiccheberg included in one category religious items of all kinds, and representations of the founder of the collection and of his family." The inventory post mortem of Octavian Secundus Fugger (1549-1600) analysed by N. Lieb12 mentioned besides personal belongings also sculptures and paintings, religious items, silverware and golden objects. Pearls, precious stones, all sorts of jewellery, clocks, automatons, scientific instruments, tapestry, and exotic handicrafts appeared as well. The courtier and former merchant of silk, Philipp Hainhofer, not only traded with his famous 'Kunstschranke' but offered Maximilian I of Bavaria a huge range of things such as sculptures, mirrors, beds for voyages, crystals and tapestry.13 He also dealt with relics and medals of grace as his correspondence with August of Braunschweig-Lilneburg reveals.14 Therefore it is necessary to extend the concept of art and art trade to all arlificialia, all sorts of luxury goods, without regard of their feature. Differences only appear in the sphere of production if various artisans intervened in the confection of these luxury wares and guild regulations had to be respected. It is difficult to establish even a difference between artificial and natural things. Precious stones, shells, especially nautilus shells, coconuts and bezoar stones were important objects in the collections or at least furnished the raw material for golden and silver objects. So did exotic artifacts. Some of them, such as Central-American featherworks were displayed directly, others, like feather pictures from the early colonial era or an olmek mask of onyx at least were given an European frame. Dealing with art and crafts also included the book trade, especially if the imprints contained copper engravings. One of the most common offers Hainhofer made to August the younger were printed books. The intention of the 'Kunst-und Wunderkammern' to reproduce the whole world en miniature and to assemble all sorts of things led therefore to a very broad concept of art, artifacts and their trade.
