Court Culture in Dresden

HELEN WATANABE-O'KELLY is Professor of German Literature at Oxford and a Fellow of Exeter College. Her previous books include Triumphall Shews, Tournaments at German Courts in their European Context 1580-1730, The Cambridge History of German Literature, and Festivals and Ceremonies.

• List of Illustrations Introduction Acknowledgements Genealogical Tables The Lutheran Legacy: The Albertine Electors and Protestant Court Culture The Italian Ideal: The Sixteenth Century Reception of Italian Court Culture The Management of Knowledge: The Dresden Collections, Their Origins and Development The Secrets of the Heavens and the Earth: Alchemy, Mining and Astrology at the Dresden Court The Fabrication of an Image: Johann Georg II's Self-Presentation The 'Recreation of the Spirit': Theatre at the Dresden Court During the Seventeenth Century The Saxon Hercules: August the Strong, Elector of Saxony, King of Poland Conclusion Bibliography Index

'Professor Watanabe-O'Kelly's investigation - under the general rubric of court culture - offers far more than one might first expect. This is political history as well as art history, cultural history as well as intellectual history. Her text and pictures order the vast collections assembled over almost two hundred years and explain the varying logic behind how they were gathered and exhibited together. Yet her analysis never dulls the sense of amazement and wonderment these princes - and their servants - worked so hard to fashion...[F]ew have produced descriptions of the poetics of power that range so widely and probe so deeply.' - Professor Mary Lindemann, Carnegie Mellon University 'This new Publication can be seen as a milestone...The wealth of detail contained in Professor Watanabe-O'Kelly's survey will fascinate both the general reader and the cultural historian and open up a wide range of areas for further study.' - Jill Bepler, Herzog August Bibliothek Wolfenbuttel '...a scholarly, original, important and well-illustrated study...'- Tim Blanning, Times Literary Supplement 'Helen Watanabe-O'Kelly's work deserves praise. This book will doubtlessly inspire other scholars to pursue further research on many subjects she considers...the clear and concise introduction to so many activities and aspects of the material culture at the court also make it a useful introduction for any student and scholar who is interested in early modern court culture throughout Europe.' - H-Net Reviews (H-German)