Artwork of the day

Anne of Cleves, Hans Holbein, 1539, oil on canvas, Louvre, Paris

 

There is a great number of portraits from Henry VIII's period. Some were used for propaganda; others served the role photographs play for us today. In the latter category belongs today’s artwork. The portrait of Anne of Cleves, a Dutch princess, was painted by Hans Holbein for a very specific reason. It was to be taken to the king as a picture of the woman who was to become his fourth wife. Henry said yes; Anne came to England and Henry instantly disliked her claiming he would marry her only to satisfy his realm. Anne became queen but the king was never able to see her as his wife suggesting he was not able to perform his marital duties because his consort was so ugly and looked like a ‘mare of Flanders’. Soon after their wedding he was involved in an affair with the teenager Katherine Howard who became wife number 5.

Anne agreed quickly to the annulment and remained in England where the king gave her a number of residences and sufficient money to lead a comfortable and independent life, very few women of her time would ever enjoy. She remained in good terms with Henry and his three children and probably made the best deal than any of Henry’s six wives.

Why Henry disliked Anne so much remains a mystery, as the portrait by Holbein could hardly explain the king’s behaviour. It has been suggested that the painting was not totally true to reality, however this is probably not true as the artist continued to enjoy Henry’s favour.

Picture from: www. bridgemanart.com/

Artwork of the day

Henry Fitzroy, Lucas Hornebolte, c 1534, watercolour and bodycolour on vellum, The Royal Collection

The Tudors had a great problem with surviving sons. Henry VIII's older brother and heir to the throne, Arthur died as a teenager while another brother in childhood. Henry VIII himself saw two sons from Katharine of Aragon dying within weeks from their birth. Both Katharine of Aragon and Anne Boleyn had a series of miscarriages something that certainly contributed to their falls. By 1536 Henry was growing old (in Tudor England standards of course) and had no male heir (he had two daughters but at that time a woman was not considered a sensible choice for the throne). He had however an illegitimate son. Henry Fitzroy was born in 1519 and his mother was one of the king's mistresses, Elizabeth Blount. Henry VIII recognized him as his son and in due time gave him the title of 1st Duke of Richmond and Somerset. Was he intending to make him officially his heir in case he did not have any other male children? No one can provide an answer to this question as the boy died as a teenager like his uncle Arthur and his brother, the future Edward VI who was born almost a year after Fitzroy's death. 

This is a lovely miniature portrait of the king's son by Lucas Hornebolt which was created approximately two years before the boy's death. 

Picture from: http://tudorhistory.org/people/fitzroy/

 

Artwork of the day

Anne Boleyn, unknown artist, 16th century (probably c 1533-1536), oil on panel, National Portrait Gallery, London

It's always difficult to identify centuries-old portraits and even more difficult to date them. This is one of the very few portraits of Henry's second wife and the attribution is almost certain. The mother of Elizabeth I, known for having reigned for only 1000 days, was the great passion of the king who broke with Rome in order to be able to divorce his first wife and marry Anne. Three years later and after Anne had several miscarriages, she was accused of adultery and incest and was executed. Her passionate love affair with the king (from which a number of love letters survive), her allegedly explosive character and tragic end have made her one of the most famous English queens of all time.

Picture from the National Portrait Gallery, http://www.npg.org.uk/

Artwork of the day

'The Whitehall Mural', copy after a Hans Holbein original from 1537

 

The original mural occupied a wall in Whitehall palace and was created by Holbein in order to commemorate the birth of Henry VIII's much awaited son, the future Edward VI. The mural was destroyed in a fire in 1698, however some copies and sketches have survived and we have the chance today to look at the picture that shaped the way we see Henry VIII. The king is depicted looking at the viewer and flanked by three dead figures: his father, Henry VII, his mother Elizabeth of York and his third wife, Jane Seymour, who died a few days after giving birth to the king's heir. While all other figures avoid eye contact with the viewer, Henry VIII looks directly at us, his body and face reminding the Thyssen portrait. The new image of the king is further consolidated. He dominates the picture with his broad body, determined gaze while the emphasis on the size of his genitals also sends a special message. 

Only a limited number of people would see this mural, as it was originally placed in the king's privy chamber. These were nevertheless, the people who were supposed to be most loyal to the king and the ones who had to be absolutely convinced of his prowess and his legitimacy to the throne of England.

Tudor art- Royal portraits- Part 2

One of the most famous English monarchs of all times is definitely Henry VIII, the man who introduced Anglicanism by breaking with Rome and the pope; the man who married six wives and executed two of them; the father of Elizabeth I and Bloody Mary.

Henry VIII’s reign however started traditionally. The young king followed his father’s footsteps in almost everything. He married his brother’s widow, the Spanish Princess, Katharine of Aragon, made himself defender of the Catholic faith and supported humanist learning.

In art too, Henry VIII and his court seemed to follow tradition. The portrait below dates from c 1520 and in both style and posture it resembles the representations of Henry VII. 

Henry VIII, unknown artist, c 1520, oil on panel, National Portrait Gallery, London

Change in Henry VIII’s reign started in the 1530’s and the reforms in religion and the king’s own growing power as head of both the earthly and spiritual domains is mirrored in art. Hans Holbein the younger, an artist from Germany, is credited with transforming royal iconography. The so called Thyssen portrait below from 1536 is radically different from any earlier representations of English monarchs. Henry VIII dominates the picture, his broad shoulders breaking the boundaries of the canvas showing his vigour, determination and strength. He looks straight at the viewer, his face turned in a three quarter view. Even the treatment of the clothes is different. Holbein shows all the luxury of the king’s garments and jewelry with great detail and the artist has even used real gold in certain parts of the painting. 

'The Thyssen Portrait', Hans Holbein, c. 1536, oil on panel, Thyssen-Bornemisza Collection, Lugano

References

Lloyd, C. and Thurley, S. 1990. Henry VIII. Images of a Tudor King. Oxford: Phaidon

Wooding, L. 2009. Henry VIII. London and New York: Routledge 

Tudor England: Images, Portraits of King Henry VIII, available online at:

http://www.marileecody.com/henry8images.html

Artwork of the day

The bee pendant, c. 1800-1600 BC, gold, Archaeological Museum, Herakleion, Crete

The bee pendant is an elaborate piece of jewellery found inside a wealthy plundered communal tomb near the palace of Mallia known as the “Chrysolakkos Tomb” (Chrysolakkos means a gold hole). It is a gold pendant that probably dates between 1800 and 1600 BC and represents two bees symmetrically arranged over what seems to be a honeycomb. Above them is a cage with a bead hanging inside it, whereas from the bee wings and tails three gold discs are hanging. The bees are depicted at the moment of placing a drop of honey in a honeycomb. The honeycomb, the bees and the discs are decorated with fine granulation and filigree technique indicating the artistic achievements of the time. The bee pendant, now exhibited at the Herakleion Archaeological Museum, exemplifies not only the use of exotic techniques learned and developed through the regular Minoan contact with the Near East, but also the Minoan desire for the creation of both naturalistic and elaborate designs. As a result the typical Minoan style was born.

Today's artwork is a generous contribution of Eleftheria Pavli, BA, MA

Artwork of the day

The Phaistos Disc, c. 1700 BC, clay, Archaeological Museum, Herakleion, Crete

The Phaistos Disc was found inside a room at the palace of Phaistos and approximately dates to 1700 BC. It is a circular clay object -almost 15 cm in diameter- stamped with the signs of writing (over 100 types 45 of which are repeated). The signs that are organized in groups and separated by lines form a spiral and they are divided from each other in sections. The text has not been deciphered yet and this has given rise to a lot of disputes regarding its meaning and purpose. Its script differs from other scripts and Linear A. For this reason some say that the disc is an import. Nevertheless, the evidence of the same type of script found in Arkalochori in Crete suggests that it might have co-existed with the Linear A perhaps for specific religious purposes or even used for keeping accounts.

Today's artwork is a generous contribution of Eleftheria Pavli, BA, MA