500 years University of Freiburg - Germany / Federal Republic of Germany 1957 - 10

In the week from 24 to 29 June 1957, the University of Freiburg commemorates the 500th anniversary of its founding in 1457. As a theme for this brand, the university had originally chosen the Freiburg Minster, and the invited artists were commissioned on this basis to work. The designs received (one by Bert Jäger, two each by Gerta and Alfred Haller and by Prof. Hans Gaenßlen) were not convincing despite some graphic stimuli. In three cases, the graphic artists had depicted the building themselves, picked out details in two other designs, be it a work of sculpture or a section of a glass window of the cathedral. It turned out that the intended motive lacked the inner connection with the occasion of the commemorative stamp. Therefore, it was decided to continue working with the Freiburg-based graphic artist Bert Jäger, who had delivered a good graphic performance with his suggestion of an enthroned royal figure, and to have the university research a more appropriate topic. Such was found in the Freiburg Sopiens manuscript, which is kept in the University. From the picture sequence of this work a page has been taken out, which shows in the form of a folk woodcut a lecturer at the desk, in front of which three attentive listeners sit in the room. The bold lines of the original, which bypasses any pictorial effect in terms of realism and perspective, allowed it to serve as a template for a brand.