Lorenz Strauch

The Kress von Kressenstein family was one of the most influential patrician families in Nuremberg and bears a sword on a red background in its coat of arms. First mentioned as a knightly family in the Nuremberg area in 1270, they belonged to the city's inner council in 1418 and repeatedly provided councillors. Their prosperity resulted from long-distance trade with Milan, Venice, Hungary and Krakow. Hieronymus Kress von Kressenstein wears armour, a millstone collar and a red sash over his shoulder in keeping with his rank. After serving for the Republic of Genoa and for Philip II of Spain, which took him through half of Europe, he took on municipal offices in Nuremberg from 1578 with numerous diplomatic missions. In 1590, he joined the city's Privy Council and was entrusted with the office of keeper of the Imperial Vestry. The Germanisches Nationalmuseum in Nuremberg has a very similar version, dated and signed with the artist's monogram in 1591 (inv. no. Gm 1470); the museum's inventory catalogue (Andreas Tacke, Die Gemälde des 17. Jhs., Mainz 1995, pp. 256-258) mentions two further portraits by Hieronymus Kress, one of which is in Kraftshof (family property), the second as a deposit in the GNM (inv. no. 1478).