4065 - Lutze, Gustav & Carlos Witte

Lutze, Gustav & Carlos Witte Masks of Dying Warriors by Andreas Schlüter (1659–1714), Berlin Zeughaus. Circa 1857. 3 coated salted paper prints, mounted on original boards. Each approx. 28.6 x 21.1 cm (mounts approx. 36 x 26.9 cm). All boards stamped: “Atelier für Architectur, Fr. Schwechten, Königl. Baurath, W., Lützowstr. 68”; typographically inscribed: “After the original by Schlüter, photographed by Lutze & Witte. Commissioned by L. Hasse & Co. in Berlin, Leipziger Str. No. 71, 1st ed.”; each numbered by hand. The Schlüterköpfe consist of 22 high-relief heads of dying warriors, designed by Andreas Schlüter and created for the inner courtyard of Berlin’s Zeughaus in 1696–97. Set as keystones above the ground-floor arched windows, the masks form a powerful counterpoint to the martial trophies on the building’s exterior. Rather than relying on conventional grotesque types, Schlüter gave the heads a strikingly individual, expressive character. This rare early photographic record, taken by the court photographers Lutze & Witte, captures three of the celebrated Baroque sculptures in impressive detail. – Boards with slight foxing and signs of age; two prints are faded, and all have some small ink spots; one has slight fading along the edges; otherwise in good condition.