J. W. von Geothe
1899
Medium
Bronze, with light gilding
Dimensions
Diam.: 6.9 cm (2 3/4 in.)
Classification
medal
Department
Painting and Sculpture of Europe
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
143516
Art Historical Context
This bronze medal, created in 1899 by Austrian artist Anton Scharff, honors the enduring legacy of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, one of Germany’s most celebrated literary figures. Though small in scale at just under three inches across, such portrait medals were popular in late nineteenth-century Europe as intimate tributes to cultural icons. Scharff, a skilled medallist, captures Goethe’s profile with refined detail, blending sculptural tradition with the commemorative function of the medium. The work’s light gilding over bronze lends a subtle warmth and luminosity to the surface, highlighting...
About the Artist
Anton Scharff · 1845–1903
Anton Scharff (1845–1903) was one of the foremost medallists and engravers of nineteenth-century Austria, whose precision, formal elegance, and prolific output earned him an international reputation. Born in Vienna, he received his training at the Imperial Mint and the Vienna Academy of Fine Arts, absorbing the rigorous technical traditions of Central European medal-making while also engaging with...