The epitaph for Prince-Bishop Ernst von Mengersdorf († 1581) is demonstrably by Werner, dating from 1595/96, based on a sketch by the court painter Jakob Ziegler. Above the body of the deceased, the epitaph depicts the structure of the Temple in which the Christ Child instructs the scribes, alluding to the bishop's contributions to the seminary. Epitaph (Dehio, Franconia, edited by Tilmann Breuer, Friedrich Oswald, Friedrich Piel, Wilhelm Schwemmer, et al., 1999) _________________________________

"The entire work, also designed by Ziegler, is a remarkable creation by the renowned and talented sculptor Hans Werner, who placed his monogram on the front faces of the ribs depicting the interior of the church on the tomb." ``` (Franz Friedrich Leitschuh: Bamberg, Leipzig 1914, p. 138) _________________________________

"The magnificent tomb monument, erected for him by Prince-Bishop Nythard von Thüngen in the cathedral (now located in St. Michael's Church), was not installed until 1596. It depicts the Prince-Bishop in life-size figure on the ceremonial bed, his mitre-adorned head resting on books, an open book in his hands; three angels with candlesticks surround him. Above this rises an architectural structure, in the central space of which the twelve-year-old Christ Child is depicted among the teachers, while in the two side chambers below, frail arms await their alms, and above are symbolic representations above the text: 'Wisdom has built herself a house' (Proverbs 9:1).

The square above the cornice bears the coats of arms of the Prince-Bishop and his diocese, surrounded by the eight smaller ancestral coats of arms." Above the square is a depiction of the Resurrection of Christ, and the head of Master Werner is visible on the console. The entire pyramidal superstructure is adorned with three female figures, the symbols of Faith, Hope, and Charity. "The same [tomb monument] was crafted by the Bamberg sculptor Hans Werner for 400 florins; the alabaster for it was supplied in 1594 by two Dutch sculptors for 176 florins, 1 pound, and 12 dl; the stones for the base came from Zeil. The painting and gilding were carried out by the painters Lukas Röder and Jakob Ziegler, the latter of whom had designed the monument in 1592." The inscription was written by Magister Cunonius, for which he received 12 florins. (Joseph Metzner: Ernst von Mengersdorf, Prince-Bishop of Bamberg, the Auxiliary Bishops Doctor Jakob Feucht and Doctor Johann Ertlin. Biographical Sketches, Bamberg 1886, pp. 30-31) _________________________________

"The reign of the refined, art-loving Ernst von Mengersdorf was, for Werner, the pinnacle of his time in Bamberg. He seems to have enjoyed the special favor of the bishop and the Upper Franconian aristocratic circles, who repeatedly employed him, and was even permitted to erect the tomb monument for his patron after his death. The Counter-Reformation had already taken hold in Bamberg under Mengersdorf, but it was his successor, Neithard von Thüngen, who rigorously pursued making Catholic doctrine the sole ruling doctrine in the Bamberg territory." Initially, the Protestant sculptor Werner was tolerated in Bamberg, probably because he was working on the tomb of the deceased bishop, and occasionally even received a small commission from the chapter. However, he was then admonished to return to the true faith; his name repeatedly appears in the Reformation records, and because he "remains completely disobedient," he was expelled from the city and had to leave Bamberg at Pentecost 1597.

At the time of the final summons to return in the summer of 1697, Werner was already working in Nuremberg, and his wife Margaretha submitted a declaration on his behalf stating his intention to leave. With his relocation to Nuremberg, which he himself described in a letter to Georg von Giech in 1600, [...] his ties to Bamberg did not completely cease; he continued to produce some, albeit smaller, works for the bishop, such as various coats of arms, now lost, in 1603 and 1604. (Felix Ettinghausen, Hans Werner, a Franconian sculptor around the year 1600, Dissertation, Würzburg, 1921, pp. 7-9)