Summary

This is a faithful photographic reproduction of an original two-dimensional work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason: Public domainPublic domainfalsefalse This work is in the public domain in the United States, and those countries with a copyright term of life of the author plus 100 years or less. This file has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights. The official position taken by the Wikimedia Foundation is that "faithful reproductions of two-dimensional public domain works of art are public domain, and that claims to the contrary represent an assault on the very concept of a public domain". For details, see Commons:When to use the PD-Art tag. This photographic reproduction is therefore also considered to be in the public domain. Please be aware that depending on local laws, re-use of this content may be prohibited or restricted in your jurisdiction. See Commons:Reuse of PD-Art photographs.

Photo's description:

Portrait of Sir Thomas More. Oak, 74.2 × 59 cm. Frick Collection, New York. Holbein arrived in England in late 1526 in search of work, bearing an introduction from the humanist scholar Erasmus, for whom he had worked in Basel, to his friend Thomas More, the English lawyer, scholar, and statesman. Holbein was welcomed as a guest by More, who found him commissions and ordered various works from him, including a portrait of his family (the original is lost but a sketch and copies by other artists survive) and this portrait. According to art historian Stephanie Buck, More's chain, signalling his high rank, indicates that this was an official portrait. His black mantle, trimmed with sable, and red velvet sleeves testify to the sitter's wealth. Buck suggests that Holbein's art advanced in this portrait, in which he uses single colours over large areas and intensifies the physical reality of the fabrics. Ellis Waterhouse describes the uniqueness of the style: "Except for the work of Titian, nothing of the same senatorial dignity of presentation was being produced in European portraiture at this time, but the means—predominantly linear—are the exact opposite to Titian's. The figure bulks largely in a clearly defined space whose cubical volume is deliberately reduced by a curtain; features, hands, and the carriage of the body are all used to convey character with equal effect, and the whole work has a Shakespearian profundity and seems to convey the full image of a European personage".(Stephanie Buck, Hans Holbein, Cologne: Könemann, 1999, pp. 54–56; Ellis Waterhouse, Painting in Britain: 1530 to 1790, London: Penguin, 1969, p. 18.)