BEHAM, THE BROTHERS. – German painters, engravers and woodcut artists. Hans SEBALD, b. Nuremberg 1500, d. Frankfurt 1550; BARTHEL, b. Nuremberg 1502, d. in Italy 1540. Together with Pencz and others they belong to the group of the so-called “Kleinmeister” (so named because of the often very small format of their engravings), who continue the tradition of Dürer (q.v.), while at the same time undergoing strong new influences, especially in ornamentation, from Italian Renaissance art (Pollaiuolo, Mantegna), as is shown by the best-known work of Barthel, the Miracle of the Cross in the Pinacoteca of Munich (1530).
In their engravings they interpret not only mythological subjects and scenes of popular life, but also religious scenes. Their skill as portraitists led Barthel, from 1530 onwards, to enter the service of the dukes of Bavaria at Munich and Landshut. – See Plate LXXIII.