The Deer Hunt of Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa and Ubaldino Ubaldini

Art Historical Context

This 1589 engraving captures a dramatic deer hunt featuring the 12th-century Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa alongside the Italian noble Ubaldino Ubaldini. Designed by Flemish artist Jan van der Straet (known as Stradanus) and engraved by Adriaen Collaert, the print portrays mounted hunters, soldiers, and energetic hounds pursuing deer through a wooded landscape. The scene celebrates the aristocratic pursuit of hunting as both sport and display of power, reflecting Renaissance fascination with medieval chivalric history. Stradanus, who spent much of his career in Italy designing prints and tapestries, specialized in dynamic hunting subjects that appealed to European courts. Collaert’s precise engraving technique translates these compositions into fine lines and textures, allowing the image to circulate widely as an affordable print. Created during a period when such works documented noble pastimes and virtues, this sheet highlights the collaborative nature of printmaking in the late 16th century. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Department of Drawings and Prints, the work offers viewers a window into how Renaissance artists reimagined earlier eras to explore themes of leadership, nature, and human skill.

About the Artist

Jan van der Straet, called Stradanus|Adriaen Collaert · 1523–1605

Jan van der Straet, known as Stradanus or Giovanni Stradano, was born in Bruges in 1523 into an artistic family. He received his earliest training in his father Jan van der Straet's painting workshop until the latter's death in 1535, followed by an apprenticeship with Bruges master Maximiliaen Francken from 1535 to 1537. Stradanus then moved to Antwerp, studying under Pieter Aertsen from 1537 to 1...