Tetschen Altar

E841971

The Tetschen Altar is a Romantic-era altarpiece painting by Caspar David Friedrich that depicts a solitary cross on a mountaintop, symbolically merging Christian iconography with a sublime natural landscape.

Jump to: Surface forms Statements Referenced by

Observed surface forms (1)

Surface form Occurrences
Tetschener Altar 1

Statements (49)

Predicate Object
instanceOf Romantic painting
altarpiece
oil painting
alsoKnownAs Cross in the Mountains NERFINISHED
Das Kreuz im Gebirge NERFINISHED
The Cross in the Mountains NERFINISHED
artHistoricalSignificance controversial for merging landscape painting with altarpiece format
early major work of Caspar David Friedrich
key work of German Romantic religious painting
commissionedFor Count Franz Anton von Thun-Hohenstein NERFINISHED
Thun family castle at Tetschen NERFINISHED
completionDate 1808
countryOfOrigin Germany
creator Caspar David Friedrich NERFINISHED
criticizedBy Basilius von Ramdohr NERFINISHED
currentCity Dresden NERFINISHED
currentCountry Germany NERFINISHED
currentLocation Galerie Neue Meister NERFINISHED
depicts cross
mountain landscape
solitary cross on a mountaintop
sublime natural landscape
frameDesigner Caspar David Friedrich NERFINISHED
genre Romanticism
hasFrame elaborate sculpted frame
hasShape arched top
iconographicElement crucifix
evening or sunset sky
fir trees
rays of light
inception circa 1807
languageOfTitle German
locatedInCountryAtCommissionTime Bohemia GENERATED
locatedInPresentDay Děčín NERFINISHED
locatedInPresentDayCountry Czech Republic NERFINISHED
locationOfCommission Tetschen GENERATED
materialUsed oil paint
movement German Romanticism NERFINISHED
notableFor innovative combination of landscape and devotional imagery
originalFunction altar painting
private devotional altarpiece
subjectHeading religious landscape
support canvas
symbolism sublime experience of the divine in landscape
union of Christian faith and nature
theme Christian salvation
meditation and contemplation
relationship between humanity, nature, and God
usesIconography Christian iconography

Referenced by (2)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

Cross in the Mountains title Tetschen Altar
Cross in the Mountains title Tetschen Altar
this entity surface form: Tetschener Altar