Sir Thomas More and Family

Last updated

Rowland Lockey after Hans Holbein the Younger, Sir Thomas More and his Family (Nostell Priory version, 1592) More famB 1280x-g0.jpg
Rowland Lockey after Hans Holbein the Younger, Sir Thomas More and his Family (Nostell Priory version, 1592)
Study for a portrait of Thomas More's family, c. 1527, by Hans Holbein the Younger (Kunstmuseum Basel) Study for portrait of the More family, by Hans Holbein the Younger.jpg
Study for a portrait of Thomas More's family, c. 1527, by Hans Holbein the Younger (Kunstmuseum Basel)

Sir Thomas More and Family is a lost painting by Hans Holbein the Younger, painted circa 1527 and known from a number of surviving copies.

Contents

The original was destroyed in 1752 in a fire at Schloss Kremsier (Kroměříž Castle), the Moravian residence of Carl von Liechtenstein, archbishop of Olmutz. [1] [2]

A study by Holbein for the painting survives in the Kunstmuseum Basel (Öffentliche Kunstsammlung Basel, Kupferstichkabinett Inv. 1662.31). The work is also preserved in a number of sixteenth-century versions by Rowland Lockey, including those in Nostell Priory and the National Portrait Gallery (formerly part of the Lenthall pictures).

Strong calls it "arguably the greatest and most innovative work of his English period" and "the earliest portrait conversation piece in English painting, at least a century ahead of its time" and asserts that "its destruction means we lost the greatest single visual artefact to epitomize the aims and ideals of the early Renaissance in England." [3]

NPG version

Sir Thomas More and Family in the National Portrait Gallery is a painting that was once part of the Lenthall pictures. [4]

The picture

Sir Thomas More and Family is one of two near life-size copies by Rowland Lockey [5] of an original by Holbein that was lost in a fire in the 18th century. [6] It is dated 1593; Holbein died in 1554. [7] It is oil on canvas and measures 89.5 inches (227 cm) by 120 inches (300 cm). It was probably commissioned by More's grandson, Thomas More II, to commemorate five generations of the family. The National Portrait Gallery lists [8] the sitters as:

The copy from the Lenthall collection has been described as “the most accomplished extant version”. [10]

The surviving drawing by Holbein confirms the general accuracy of the picture.

The scene contrasts the sombre, berobed More and his father, with the messy and lively surrounding family in various demure but relatively informal poses: women, pets, books, and instruments. [9]

Provenance

The painting had been at Gubbins in Hertfordshire. At some time it came into the possession of the Lenthall family, but how this happened is not known, although it may have been borrowed from the More family and never returned. In the 17th century, John Aubrey viewed it at the Besselsleigh home of Sir John Lenthall, [11] but by 1727 it was at Burford Priory. [12] It was discussed in detail by John Loveday who saw it in 1736. The painting was unsold in a small sale of the Lenthall pictures in 1808 but was offered again and sold in a major sale in 1833. It was subsequently owned by Walter Strickland, CW Dormer, Sir Hugh Lane, Viscount Lee, and EJ Horniman whose widow bequeathed it to the National Portrait Gallery where it remains. [13] It was the centre piece in the exhibition, The King's Good Servant, at the National Portrait Gallery in 1977. [14]

Nostell Priory version

The version at Nostell Priory is described as "the only faithful, same-size representation of the lost original" and is inscribed “Rolandus Lockey/fecit a.d." dated 1592. [15] It includes other members of his household: More's secretary peeking through a door, his "fool" and his pet monkey. [9]

It is unclear who the artist was, who commissioned it or who originally owned it. A radiocarbon dating test was carried out on 1982 which concluded the flax to be no later than 1520. For this reason, it is highly likely that it predates the NPG Roland Lockey version of 1593. Lockey was known as an excellent copyist, but his sitters' faces are lacking subtle character details.

Those of the Nostell version—which includes all the sitters—closely resemble the heads of the original Holbein study now preserved in Windsor Castle. The Holbein head studies were acquired by Lord Arundel when he cleared out Holbein's workshop in 1546. It was Lord Arundel's family who later sold the original lost Holbein in 1654, but how they obtained it is unclear.

The art connoisseur of the period Van Mander records that a life-sized portrait by Holbein of Thomas More and his family was owned by Andries de Loo, an avid Holbein collector. He records also that a member of the More family on de Loos's death purchased this same portrait [1590]. This story is also confirmed by the art historian George Virtue, recorded in 1731, referring to the portrait now identified as the Nostell version. [16]

This makes sense if there were in fact two versions done by Holbein. The book above Judge John More's right shoulder is Boethius’s Consolation of Philosophy in which the story parallels Thomas More's arrest and execution, suggesting that the Nostell version reflects More's execution in 1535. It could just be that Holbein was asked by Thomas Cromwell to make a propaganda piece to go with the Great Bible of 1538, Thomas More representing the old order and Cromwell the new. [17]

Other versions

A cabinet miniature version of this portrait c. 1594 with different details, also likely to be by Lockey, is in the Victoria and Albert Museum. [18] [19]

Two further copies of the Holbein, at old Chelsea Town Hall (formerly one of the Petre Pictures) and Hendred House, East Hendred, may be by Lockey, but are too damaged and over-painted for any certainty to be possible. [20]

Holbein or More sent a small preparatory drawing to Erasmus, which survives. [9]

Cultural influences

The painting is described in Wolf Hall , a historical novel by Hilary Mantel about the rise to power of Thomas Cromwell that won the 2009 Man Booker Prize: [21]

The favorite, Meg, sits at her father's feet with a book on her knee. Gathered loosely about the Lord Chancellor are his son John; his ward Anne Cresacre, who is John's wife; Margaret Giggs, who is also his ward; his aged father, Sir John More; his daughters Cicely and Elizabeth; Pattinson, with goggle eyes; and his wife, Alice, with lowered head and wearing a cross, at the edge of the picture. Master Holbein has grouped them under his gaze, filed them forever: as long as no moth consumes, no flame or mould or blight.

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hans Holbein the Younger</span> German artist and printmaker

Hans Holbein the Younger was a German-Swiss painter and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style, and is considered one of the greatest portraitists of the 16th century. He also produced religious art, satire, and Reformation propaganda, and he made a significant contribution to the history of book design. He is called "the Younger" to distinguish him from his father Hans Holbein the Elder, an accomplished painter of the Late Gothic school.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Seymour, Lady Cromwell</span> English noblewoman

Elizabeth Seymour was a younger daughter of Sir John Seymour of Wulfhall, Wiltshire and Margery Wentworth. Elizabeth and her sister Jane served in the household of Anne Boleyn, the second wife of Henry VIII. The Seymours rose to prominence after the king's attention turned to Jane. In May 1536, Anne Boleyn was accused of treason and adultery, and subsequently executed. On 30 May 1536, eleven days after Anne's execution, Henry VIII and Jane were married. Elizabeth was not included in her sister's household during her brief reign, although she would serve two of Henry VIII's later wives, Anne of Cleves and Catherine Howard. Jane died 24 October 1537, twelve days after giving birth to a healthy son, Edward VI.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nostell Priory</span> Historic house located in West Yorkshire, England

Nostell Priory is a Palladian house in Nostell, West Yorkshire, England, near Crofton on the road to Doncaster from Wakefield. It dates from 1733, and was built for the Winn family on the site of a medieval priory. The Priory and its contents were given to the National Trust in 1953 by the trustees of the estate and Rowland Winn, 3rd Baron St Oswald.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">William Larkin (painter)</span> English painter

William Larkin was an English painter active from 1609 until his death in 1619, known for his iconic portraits of members of the court of James I of England which capture in brilliant detail the opulent layering of textiles, embroidery, lace, and jewellery characteristic of fashion in the Jacobean era, as well as representing numerous fine examples of oriental carpets in Renaissance painting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Rowland Lockey</span> English painter

Rowland Lockey was an English painter and goldsmith, and was the son of Leonard Lockey, a crossbow maker of the parish of St Bride's, Fleet Street, London. Lockey was apprenticed to Queen Elizabeth's miniaturist and goldsmith Nicholas Hilliard for eight years beginning Michaelmas 1581 and was made a freeman or master of the Worshipful Company of Goldsmiths by 1600.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Artists of the Tudor court</span> Painters and limners engaged by the Tudor dynasty between 1485 and 1603

The artists of the Tudor court are the painters and limners engaged by the monarchs of England's Tudor dynasty and their courtiers between 1485 and 1603, from the reign of Henry VII to the death of Elizabeth I.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Manor House, 21 Soho Square</span>

Manor House, 21 Soho Square is a Grade II listed building in the West End of London. It has 17th-century origins but the existing structure dates from 1838. It was originally built in 1678 as a townhouse but through its history has also been a notorious brothel, the headquarters of Crosse & Blackwell and is now an office building.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Catherine Howard</span> Queen of England from 1540 to 1541

Catherine Howard, also spelt Katheryn Howard, was Queen of England from 1540 until 1541 as the fifth wife of King Henry VIII. She was the daughter of Lord Edmund Howard and Joyce Culpeper, a cousin to Anne Boleyn, and the niece of Thomas Howard, 3rd Duke of Norfolk. Thomas Howard was a prominent politician at Henry's court, and he secured her a place in the household of Henry's fourth wife, Anne of Cleves, where she caught the King's interest. She married him on 28 July 1540 at Oatlands Palace in Surrey, just 19 days after the annulment of his marriage to Anne. He was 49, and she was between 15 and 21 years old, though it's widely accepted that she was 17 at the time of her marriage to Henry VIII.

<i>Portrait of Sir Thomas More</i> Painting by Hans Holbein the Younger

Portrait of Sir Thomas More is an oak panel painting commissioned in 1527 of Thomas More by the German artist and printmaker Hans Holbein the Younger, now in the Frick Collection in New York.

The Lenthall pictures were a number of paintings owned by the Lenthall family and housed at Burford Priory. The collection was publicly commented on by art historians and tourists. It was largely dispersed in two sales in 1808 and 1833, although some works were retained by the family and sold in the late 20th century.

<i>Portrait of Thomas Cromwell</i> Painting by Hans Holbein the Younger

Portrait of Thomas Cromwell is a small oil painting by the German and Swiss artist Hans Holbein the Younger, usually dated to between 1532 and 1534, when Cromwell, an English lawyer and statesman who served as chief minister to King Henry VIII of England from 1532 to 1540, was around 48 years old. It is one of two portraits Holbein painted of him; the other is a tondo from a series of medallions of Tudor courtiers.

The Petre Family pictures were a collection of portraits and other paintings housed at Ingatestone Hall and Thorndon Hall. The pictures were initially displayed in the long gallery at Ingatestone Hall. By 1600 the displayed paintings included a portrait of William Petre which remains at Ingatestone Hall. At that time it was the only family portrait on display.

<i>Portrait of a Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling</i> Painting by Hans Holbein the Younger

Portrait of a Lady with a Squirrel and a Starling is an oil-on-oak portrait completed in around 1526–1528 by German Renaissance painter Hans Holbein the Younger. The painting shows a demurely dressed young woman sitting against a plain blue background and holding in her lap a squirrel on a chain eating a nut; a starling sits on a grape vine in the background with its beak pointing at her right ear. The grape, a Biblical motif, for Holbein was a symbol of abundance and wealth. The subject of this portrait is believed to be Anne Lovell, wife of Sir Francis Lovell (d. 1551), an Esquire of the Body to Henry VIII.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Dauncey</span> English courtier

Elizabeth Dauncey, one of Thomas More's children, was part of a circle of exceptionally educated and accomplished women who exemplified "learned ladies" for the next two centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cecily Heron</span> English courtier

Cecily Heron, one of Thomas More's children, was part of a circle of exceptionally educated and accomplished women who exemplified "learned ladies" for the next two centuries.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schwarzwald family</span> Polish noble family

The Schwarzwald family was a wealthy, patrician, merchant family living in the Hanseatic city of Danzig (Gdańsk) from the 15th to the 18th century. The family, which had its origins in the Black Forest in south-west Germany, can be traced back to Georg von Schwarzwald, who settled in Danzig in the early 1400s.

<i>Portrait of a Lady, probably a Member of the Cromwell Family</i> Painting by Hans Holbein the Younger

Portrait of a Lady, probably a Member of the Cromwell Family is an oil on panel portrait completed in around 1535–1540 by German painter and printmaker, Hans Holbein the Younger. The painting shows an elegantly but demurely dressed young woman sitting against a blue-grey background. The subject of this portrait is thought to be a member of the Cromwell family, perhaps Thomas Cromwell's daughter-in-law, Elizabeth Seymour, sister to Jane, third consort of Henry VIII.

<i>Portrait Miniature of Hans Schwarzwaldt</i> Painting by Hans Holbein the Younger

Portrait Miniature of Hans Schwarzwaldt is a watercolour on vellum portrait completed in around 1535–1540 by German artist and printmaker, Hans Holbein the Younger. The painting shows a young man against a clear blue background. Only the head and shoulders are shown, turned three-quarters to the viewer's right, the eyes cast down. The light brown hair is close cropped, and the sitter is wearing a brown doublet, trimmed with black, with a small, open falling collar with white strings attached. There is no inscription. The subject of this portrait was identified as a Danzig merchant, Hans Schwarzwaldt (1513-1575), based on a very strong resemblance to another portrait made by Holbein in 1543, but his age does not match the inscription. It has been suggested that the young man might be Gregory Cromwell, 1st Baron Cromwell, the son of Henry VIII's chief minister, Thomas Cromwell, 1st Earl of Essex.

References

  1. Guy, John (2009). A Daughter's Love: Thomas More and his Dearest Meg. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p.172.
  2. Strong, Roy (1990). Lost Treasures of Britain: Five Centuries of Creation and Destruction . London: Viking. ISBN   978-0-670-83383-2.
  3. Strong, Roy (1990). Lost Treasures of Britain: Five Centuries of Creation and Destruction . London: Viking. ISBN   978-0-670-83383-2.
  4. The English Counties Delineated, Volume 2, Thomas Moule, 1837
  5. Cooper, Tarnya (2008). A Guide to Tudor & Jacobean Portraits. National Portrait Gallery. p. 38.
  6. UK and Ireland Genealogy
  7. A biographical and critical dictionary of painters and engravers, Michael Bryan, page 337
  8. NPG catalogue entry
  9. 1 2 3 4 Smith, David R (September 2005). "Portrait and Counter-Portrait in Holbein's The Family of Sir Thomas More". The Art Bulletin. 87 (3): 484–506. doi:10.1080/00043079.2005.10786256.
  10. Eade, Jane; Taylor, David (2015). "Sir Thomas More's Family". National Trust Historic Houses and Collections Annual. Apollo. p. 9.
  11. Hearn, Thomas; Aubrey, John (1813). Letters Written by Eminent Persons in the Seventeenth and Eighteenth Centuries: to which are Added, Hearne's Journeys to Reading, and to Whaddon Hall, the Seat of Browne Willis, Esq., and Lives of Eminent Men, by John Aubrey, Esq. Longman, Hurst, Rees, Orme, and Brown. p. 464.
  12. Tudor and Jacobean Portraits, Roy Strong, HMSO, 1969
  13. Lewis, 1998, p.32
  14. Lewis, 1998, p.32
  15. National Trust: Sir Thomas More and his Family (after Hans Holbein the Younger)
  16. Lewis 1998 Thomas More Family Group Portraits After Holbein
  17. Erasmus and a Portrait of Thomas More; by Holbein. Amazon.
    • Strong, Roy (1969). The English Icon: Elizabethan and Jacobean Portraiture, London, Routledge & Kegan Paul p. 255.
  18. V&A Museum
  19. Lewis, Lesley (1998). The Thomas More Family Group Portraits After Holbein. Gracewing, Fowler Wright Books. p. 9. ISBN   0852444664.
  20. Mantel, Hilary (2010). Wolf Hall. Picador. p. 210.