GEMÄLDE DES 19. JAHRHUNDERTS 27. MÄRZ 2026

of secret knowledge and magical wisdom. When he died in 1484, he was said to have taken his esoteric and occult writings with him into the grave, having decreed that the tomb containing this hidden knowledge should not be opened until 120 years after his death, at which point his insights would be revealed to mankind. Legend has it that an adventurer eventually gained access to the crypt in search of these arcane writings. Upon ente- ring the tomb, the intruder was allegedly dazzled by a blin- ding light, whereupon a humanoid figure in armour – the guardian of Rosicrucius’s tomb – shattered a burning lamp before him with his staff. It is precisely this moment that Füssli captures in the present painting. The ‘eternal lamp’, accor- ding to Budgell, symbolises secret knowledge, while the figure dressed in armour embodies Rosicrucius’s final will to with- hold his revelations from humanity after all. This masterpiece by Füssli, notable for the dynamic rendering of the figures and the dramatic lighting, is further enhanced by an exceptionally distinguished provenance. From 1976 onwards, the painting formed part of the renowned Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection and was displayed at the Villa Favorita in Castagnola on Lake Lugano. It remained there until the collection’s reloca- tion from Ticino to Madrid in 1993, after which the work was acquired directly from the collection by a Swiss art collector. It is therefore a particular pleasure to be able to present this painting to the public once again after decades in private ownership. CHF 150 000/250 000 (€ 163 040/271 740) 151