Introduction

This exhibit highlights the pamphlet Widder die Bullen des Enchrists, a German Reformation Pamphlet published in 1520 by Martin Luther. This pamphlet was challenged due to the dramatic apocalyptic language referring to Pope Leo X as the Antichrist. The pamphlet was also banned due to Martin Luther’s refusal to recant his heretical writings and ideas against the Catholic Church. The context highlights the conflict between Martin Luther and Pope Leo X and the Catholic Church during the sixteenth-century by showcasing Widder die Bullen des Enchrists as a response to rumours circulating about the Papal Bull, Exsurge Domine. The exhibit highlights the tensions of back-and-forth reactions by Luther and the papacy and the role of the printing press in the dissemination of pamphlets. The exhibit will conclude with the insights about the ephemerality of the pamphlet as the basis for its physical survival due to the virality and popularity created by Martin Luther.