Martin Luther and Katharina von Bora

At the wedding of the German theologian and reformer Martin Luther (1483–1546) and Katharina von Bora (1499–1552) on 13 June 1525, the artist Lucas Cranach presented the couple with a pair of small, round portraits. He and his workshop then produced several copies for the couple’s close friends and relatives. Cranach’s and Holbein’s roundels reflect the popularity of this format in the early sixteenth century and emphasize the portrait’s importance as a gift that commemorated an event or intimate connection.