Hans Krell
Hans Krell (c. 1490 – 1565 or 1586), also Krehl ou Kreil, was a German painter of the Renaissance, mainly known as a portrait painter. He is thought to have been born in Crailsheim or Ansbach, and died in Leipzig.
Also recorded as Hans Krel · Hans Krehl · Krell
Hans Krell
Attributed to Hans Krell · Public domain
- Name
- Hans Krell
- Born
- c. 1490
- Birthplace
- Crailsheim
- Died
- 1565 or 1586
- Place of death
- Leipzig
- Field
- Painting
- Movement
- Renaissance
- Nationality
- Germany
- Occupation
- painter
- Languages
- German
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Documentary summary
Hans Krell (c. 1490 – 1565 or 1586), also Krehl ou Kreil, was a German painter of the Renaissance, mainly known as a portrait painter. He is thought to have been born in Crailsheim or Ansbach, and died in Leipzig.
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Documentary evidence
Documentary basis
Authority files
wikidata · Q1580861 · wikipedia · Hans Krell
In this article
Biography
Biography
Krell started his career as court painter of George the Pious, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach in Ansbach. He then entered into the service of King Louis II of Hungary in Prague and Buda, where he was employed as court portraitist in the years 1522–1526. He is later recorded in Leipzig (from 1531) and in Freiberg in Saxony (since 1534). Krell was known as the Fürstenmaler (Painter of Princes) in service of the German Princes – Albrecht of Brandenburg-Ansbach, Duke in Prussia, Hedwig Jagiellon, Electress of Brandenburg and the Elector Augustus of Saxony. His paintings of Saxon princes in the ceremonial hall and the council chamber of the Old Town Hall in Leipzig were continually being completed. Credited by Dieter Koepplin as the author of a painting (Battle of Orsha) long associated with Lucas Cranach the Elder, painted around 1524–1530. The painting, today displayed in the National Museum in Warsaw, depicts the battle which was fought on 8 September 1514 between the allied forces of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the Kingdom of Poland on one side and the army of the Grand Duchy of Moscow on the other. According to specialists, the author must have taken part in the battle himself due to his high knowledge on the subject. Krell's connections with the Jagiellonian dynasty patrons (including king of Hungary) and rulers of Prussia makes this attribution probable. The author of the painting portraited himself in the painting observing the battle and gazing upwards through intertwined fingers.
The recorded working language is German. The field of work recorded is painting. Subjects and genres recorded for the work are portrait. Places of work recorded in the authority are Prague and Leipzig. Work by Hans Krell is recorded in the collections of National Museum in Warsaw, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Walker Art Gallery, Bavarian State Painting Collections and Staatliche Kunstsammlungen Dresden.
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Hans Krell • Born — c. 1490 • Birthplace — Crailsheim • Died — 1565 or 1586 • Place of death — Leipzig • Field — Painting • Movement — Renaissance • Works — Battle of Orsha
Identity
Identity
Hans Krell is recorded as painter.
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1490
Hans Krell born at Crailsheim.
1565
Hans Krell died at Leipzig.
Places
Named by the record
Places
Only places the record itself states, plotted where the house gazetteer settles their coordinates. Nothing is inferred from a name or a nationality.
Crailsheim.
Birth place
Leipzig.
Death place
Literature
Literature
Literature
Krell, Hans, Benezit Dictionary of Artists, 2011
Krell v Henry [1903] 2 KB 740, Law Trove, 2018
Scholarly footprint
Literature
Scholarly footprint
A count of publications is evidence of attention, not of standing, and is given here only as a measure.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Pierre Curie. Chefs-d'oeuvre du musée des Beaux-Arts de Leipzig. Paris-Musées. 76. 1993. 9782879001180.
- 2.Thomas Ralph Merton. A Catalogue of Pictures and Drawings from the Collection of Sir Thomas Merton: At Stubbings House, Maidenhead. Privately at Chiswick Press. 64. 1950.
- 3.Biographical sketch in Helen A Dickinson German Masters of Art p. 96
- 4.Bosz. Polish Commonwealth Treasures: On the History of Polish Collecting from the 13th Century to the Late 18th. 120. 2008. 978-83-87730-81-9.
References
Citations
References
Each reference names the institution holding it, so a reader may go to the document itself.
reference work
Wikidata, structured authority record Q1580861: Hans KrellWikimedia Foundation
Secondary witnessreference work
Secondary witness
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 16 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Paintings
19,183 published records in this field, each with its sources named.
- Hans Jürgen KallmanArtist
- Hans KnieperArtist
- Hans KnudsenArtist
- Hans KohnertArtist
- Hans KrüsiArtist
- Hans LarwinArtist
- Hans Leu the ElderArtist
- Hans Leu the YoungerArtist
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