Emblematic Strategies in the Devotions and Dynasty of Dorothea, Princess of Anhalt

Mara R Wade

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingChapter

Abstract

A princess in seventeenth-century German-speaking lands had two obligations after her marriage beyond producing children: to represent her birth dynasty and to uphold its religion for the rest of her life. Dorothea of Anhalt-Zerbst, wife of August of Braunschweig-Wolfenbüttel, owned two emblem books, both preserved today at the Herzog August Bibliothek, that were customized for her as Stammbücher, or alba amicorum, and given to her as a child. Dorothea used one volume, Andreas Friedrich’s Emblemata Nova as her personal Stammbuch during her lifetime. The other volume was Georgette de Montenay’s Stammbuch/ Darinnen … Hundert Emblemata. These two Protestant emblem books served as devotional literature for her to learn important tenets of her Calvinist faith and to negotiate the Lutheran world around her. Owing to the many entries by family members, her copy of the Friedrich volume became a site for dynastic memory.
Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publicationCultural Shifts and Ritual Transformations in Reformation Europe
Subtitle of host publicationEssays in Honor of Susan C. Karant-Nunn
EditorsVictoria Christman, Marjorie Elizabeth Plummer
PublisherBrill
Chapter9
Pages210-229
Number of pages20
ISBN (Electronic)978-90-04-43602-2
ISBN (Print)978-90-04-43601-5
DOIs
StatePublished - Aug 10 2020

Publication series

NameStudies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions
PublisherBrill
Volume223
ISSN (Print)1573-4188

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