This attractively produced boxed set, consisting of an exhibition catalogue and an accompanying collection of essays, was published to celebrate the 1200th anniversary of the founding of the city of Halle in 2006, and is a striking product of German regionalism: in more centralised countries, only a significant national commemoration would merit such a lavish and heavily-subsidised publication. Its subject, Albert of Brandenburg, put Halle on the map as a ‘Renaissance metropolis’ through his extensive patronage of music and the visual arts. But Albert was also the last prince-archbishop of Magdeburg to reside in Halle, before it declared for the Reformation. This fact, and the fact that Albert is so much better known to history as the addressee of Martin Luther's fateful critique of indulgences, explains the leitmotif of failure and defeat which pervades these volumes, from Jeffrey Chipps Smith's introductory essay ‘Die Kunst des Scheiterns’, to Andreas Tacke's foreword to volume ii which contrasts Albert ‘der Verlierer’ with Luther ‘der Gewinner’. Naturally, the picture is more complex than that. Although Albert's loyalty to Rome was never in doubt, he actively supported attempts at mediation. And although he was an enthusiastic patron of Halle's extensive collection of relics, he stopped exhibiting them publicly after 1521, apparently in deference to protests from reformers and humanists alike. The essays in volume ii complement the catalogue very effectively, some shedding light on aspects of Albert's life and legacy, others setting his reign in broader context. Self-promotion through control and manipulation of his image in various ways is the subject of essays by Berthold Hinz, Harald Drös, Tacke himself, Wilhelm Ernst Winterhagen and Barbara Pregla. Peter Claus Hartmann assesses his effectiveness as an ecclesiastical administrator, while Rolf Decot and Christian Hecht contribute essays on his theology. Thomas Schauerte and Elisabeth Schröter contextualise his humanism. Other essays cover particular areas of his patronage: printed books (Thomas Döring, Bodo Brinkmann and Katharina Georgi, Schauerte again, and Sven Hauschke); iconography and portraiture (Tacke again, Birgit Ulrike Münch and Ursula Thiel); the Halle reliquary collection (Ursula Timann); music (Volker Schier); liturgy (Matthias Hamann); and architecture (Matthias Müller). One would have expected to see more about Albert's political activity – he was the most powerful prince in Germany after the emperor – but there is much to treasure in these volumes.