Patron of the Arts – Wolf Engelbert, Count of Auersperg (1610–1673), Governor of Carniola: His Life and Work
In the 17th century the Duchy of Carniola (until 1918 part of Austria, today in Slovenia) saw an upswing in artistic production, at whose center – thus the hypothesis of this research – stood the patron Wolf Engelbert, Count of Auersperg (1610–1673), Governor of Carniola (1649–1673). His Ljubljana Palais or Fürstenhof housed a well-stocked library, a cabinet of curiosities, paintings and – uniquely for this region – even a number of antiquities. The project focuses on the works commissioned by Wolf Engelbert, his collection of antique objects from the formerly Roman Ljubljana, and the remains of the sculpture collection in his “princely gardens”. The evaluation of the surviving sources, especially the newly discovered long lost Inventories made after the death of Wolf Engelberts universal heir and bother Johann Weikhard first Prince of Auersperg (1615–1677), sheds new light on individual Baroque monuments in Slovenia, while the analysis of Wolf Engelbert of Auersperg’s library enhances our picture of the Count as a collector. This research project thereby seeks to gain an insight into the principle of dynastic collecting practice, on the basis of various monuments that were passed down from generation to generation within the Auersperg family. Wolf Engelbert’s estate, long since destroyed by earthquakes, war and other catastrophes, is awakened to new life in our digital century.
