Die Münchner Moriskentänzer

Made by the sculptor Erasmus Grasser in 1480, the Morris Dancers rank among the most valuable sculptures in the Münchner Stadtmuseum's collections. The name given to the figures most likely derives from leap dances developed by the Moors which were later performed at the major European courts. The first recorded mention of Erasmus Grasser dates back to 1475. In a submission to the Munich City Council during that year, the guild of "Painters, Carvers, Embroiderers and Glaziers" sought to prevent the young sculptor from the Palatinate from being granted the status of "Master Craftsman". In their document, Grasser is characterized as a "disruptive, promiscuous and disingenuous knave". Despite this, he evidently caught the eye with his innovative and unfamiliar style in Munich, and shortly afterwards was awarded a highly lucrative assignment from the city authorities. For the "Dance Hall" (now "Old City Hall") that Jörg von Halsbach had been building since 1470, Grasser made eleven coats of arms plus the symbols for the sun and the moon. In 1480 he received payment for his figures of sixteen Morris Dancers, part of a heraldic ceiling designed to historically legitimize Duke Albrecht IV