Hans Roth [reverse]

The reverse of Strigel's Hans Roth portrait displays a heraldic or devotional image on the back of the panel — a standard practice for double-sided portable portraits of the period. The portrait obverse/reverse combination was a common format for German upper-class portraiture in the early sixteenth century, the front recording the sitter's appearance and the back displaying family arms or a religious image that expressed piety and family identity. Strigel's use of both sides of the panel reflected the functions that portraits served simultaneously: social documentation of a specific individual and expression of that individual's family identity, spiritual allegiance, and social standing.

Strigel's oil on panel on the reverse side shows the careful, precise craftsmanship expected of heraldic painting, with clear, legible rendering of arms or text that complements the portrait on the obverse.