Theatrum genealogicum. Family Trees of Counts of Herberstein and Dietrichstein as a Means of Aristocratic Representation

Abstract

The paper discusses the paintings and graphic prints of the genealogies of the Herberstein and Dietrichstein families that were made in the 17th and 19th centuries. The visualizations of the genealogies are put into the context of concurrent historical works that were published under commission from the discussed noble families, where their representative role was put in the forefront. The depictions of coats-of-arms, portraits, symbolic figures and objects, vedute and historical scenes, which complete the family trees, are analysed, with a great deal of attention placed on the inscriptions on paintings and graphics. The paper offers new findings on historiographers who published genealogical works on the commissions of the nobility and designed visual depictions of the genealogical knowledge, especially about the imperial historiographer Dominicus Franciscus Calin. Moreover, the paper introduces hitherto unpublished Calin’s large format genealogies, which he painted in 1672 and 1675 under commission of successful courtier Gundakar Count Dietrichstein.