Hans Beham

Hans Beham (born circa 1480 in Nuremberg, died 1533 in Kraków) was a German bell-founder and artillery craftsman in the service of King Sigismund I the Old.

Active in Nuremberg from around 1498, he primarily worked on casting cannons, with less frequent involvement in bell production. Likely arriving in Kraków in 1518, he created The Sigismund Bell two years later. From 1522 until his death, he served as a royal servitor, supervisor of royal gunners and the arsenal, and senior gunner.

Biography

Origins Hans Beham was born around 1480 as the younger son of Hans Beham the Elder (died 1498), who was either a blacksmith or a coppersmith. At about 18 years old, Hans inherited his father's workshop. Initially, he likely followed his father's trade but later shifted his focus to bellfounding and gun-making. His decision to settle there might have been influenced by the expectation of fewer competitors compared to Nuremberg, as well as the respect that Nuremberg craftsmen enjoyed in Poland. One of his first commissions was probably the casting of a bell for the Church of St. Margaret in Raciborowice, which was under the patronage of the cathedral chapter. This unsigned bell, still preserved, is considered his work based on stylistic features such as decorative motifs and the antiqua-like letter case used in the inscription.

Thanks to the patronage of Jan Boner or the cathedral chapter, Beham attracted the attention of the royal court. The king's interest in Nuremberg craftsmanship might have also played a role. In 1520, Beham served as the senior gunner during the Polish–Teutonic War. That same year, he was commissioned to cast The Sigismund Bell for the Wawel Cathedral, funded by the monarch. Beham completed the work in the latter half of the year and likely oversaw the installation between 9 and 13 July 1521.

He placed his signature on the bell in two locations. On one side of the bell's waist, beneath the plaque with Sigismund of Burgundy, was the inscription "HANS BEHAM VON NVRMBERG", divided by his house mark, which depicted a three-leafed clover, or alternatively, a cross supported by a crescent moon topped with a three-leaf clover. Below the plaque with Stanislaus of Szczepanów, the inscription "IOANNES BOHEMVS DE NVREMBERGENSIS" appeared, again divided by his house mark. Although the large house mark (17.5 cm high, twice the size of the royal coats of arms) was an original feature of the bell's decoration, the German and Latin signatures were added later and were carved in a style that was inconsistent with the rest of the bell's design. The edges of the inscriptions are uneven, and some of the letters are poorly rendered. It's likely that Beham himself had little involvement in the carving of these signatures, and the form of his name used is one that he would not have typically employed.

The successful completion of this commission strengthened Beham's position, and on 12 March 1522, he was formally accepted into royal service. As a servant to the king, he became the supervisor of the royal bell-founders and the arsenal. a time of heightened royal interest in military rearmament following the Turkish and Tatar invasions of Podolia in the summer of that year.

Beham remained in royal service until his death, which most likely occurred in 1533. His wife, Elżbieta Rossner, was listed as a widow in the municipal records on 21 May 1533, confirming that she had inherited his estate.