Jester
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A jester, also known as joker, court jester, or fool, was a member of the household of a nobleman or a monarch kept to entertain guests at the royal court. Jesters were also travelling performers who
Woodcut of a jester by Heinrich Vogtherr the Younger, c. 1540
1404–1425, France. Two men smile at a jester's act, appearing to use a dog for a bagpipe.
Festival of the Archers. Master of Frankfurt, 1493. Two jesters are depicted in the centre of the picture.
King Lear and the Fool in the Storm by William Dyce
Stańczyk
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Stańczyk was the most famous Polish court jester. He was employed by three subsequent Polish kings: Alexander, Sigismund the Old and Sigismund Augustus, and was praised by his contemporaries for his w
Jester
…Erwyd le Fol) as the official resident jester of the town and its people, a post that had been vacant since 1295. Poland's most famous court jester was Stańczyk (c. 1480–1560), whose jokes were usually related to political matters, and who later became a historical symbol for Poles. In 2004 English Heritage…
A 1532 miniature by Stanisław Samostrzelnik depicting a scene at the court of Sigismund I of Poland. The figure on the bottom is presumed to be the only depiction of Stańczyk made in his own lifetime.
Modern statue of Stańczyk in Niepołomice Castle, a former royal residence
Stańczyk by Jan Matejko The jester is depicted as the only person at a royal ball troubled by the news that the Muscovites have captured Smolensk, which happened in 1514.
Jan Matejko, Stańczyk Feigning a Toothache, 1856, The National Museum in Kraków.