GERHAERT VAN LEYDEN, Nicolaus
(active 1462-1473)

Woman's Head

1463-64
Red sandstone
Liebieghaus, Frankfurt

The doorway of the Strasbourg Chancellery, erected in 1463-64, was ornamented by Nicholas of Leyden with a Virgin and Child, the armorial bearings of the town, and two busts; an old man and a young woman probably representing the Emperor Augustus and the Sibyl of Tibur, who were known from earlier casts. Only the two heads in red sandstone are preserved in Strasbourg and Frankfurt. (The reproduction shows the latter.)