Theodoric of Prague

Who was Theodoric of Prague?

Theodoric of Prague or Master Theoderic was a Gothic painter who was court painter to Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor and the first Bohemian painter whose name can be linked to a body of work. His masterpiece, by which he is known, is the Chapel of the Holy Cross at Charles' newly completed Karlštejn Castle castle-palace near Prague, containing a large series of slightly over-lifesize half-length panel portraits of saints and other notable figures on a gold ground, commissioned in 1359, though completed over a number of years. Theodoric was the first Czech painter whose works are confirmed by archived documentation.

Theodoric’s magnum opus is a collection of panel paintings and wall paintings that were done on the commission of Charles IV for the Chapel of the Holy Cross at Karlstejn Castle. All together, there are 129 works, all of saints, prophets, or angels. The National Gallery in Prague said that they “only few equals in the world: we believe that it is no exaggeration to say that they bear comparison with such artistic monuments and phenomena as the Arena in Padua, the churches at Assisi or Sta, Croce in Florence [and the] palace of the popes in Avignon.”