What comes to mind when you think of Henry VIII? Fierce palace fights in The Tudors? Yes, the English king was indeed amorous, he changed 6 queens before and after, and was so ruthless with his predecessor that he even executed two of them.
But there is no denying that he did lay the foundation for England to become the center of the Renaissance, freed from the shackles of the Holy See, albeit for divorce, but under his leadership England further consolidated the power of the monarchy, on which her daughter Elizabeth I was able to build on this basis and bring England to the first pinnacle of development.
Portrait of Henry VIII of England, Hans Holbein
The protagonist that Sister Bazhu wants to introduce to you today is not Henry VIII, but his very favored royal court painter Hans Holbein, a very legendary artist, who at first only painted portraits of kings, and slowly, he also served as a "court costume designer" and "court jewelry designer" with a unique taste, and later, recommended the fourth queen, Anne of Creeves, for Henry VIII. And rarely "named" a jewelry style after himself.
Portrait of Jane Seymour by Hans Holbein
Miraculously, Holbein was recommended to Henry VIII by the second queen, Anne Boleyn, and it is known that she became the first queen to be executed by the king, who disliked her so much that the execution drove out a large number of court personnel related to her.
Only Holbein remained deeply trusted and maintained a good relationship with the third queen, Jane Seymour, painting her portrait and designing many jewels for her, including a necklace pendant with their initials as a token of love for the royal couple.
Design of two initials jewelry in the Jewelry Book Hans Holbein
A brooch designed by Hans Holbein is worn in a portrait of Jane Seymour
After Jane Seymour died of illness, the then minister Cromwell strongly recommended Anne of the small country of Clevis to be the fourth queen, and the king sent Holbein to the portrait, but because Cromwell was another "big financier" of Holbein, he used a "beauty filter" on the portrait, and Henry VIII chose Anne as the fourth queen. But when the wedding took place, the king was so disappointed that he did not even have a room with her. Cromwell fell, but Holbein remained favored by the king.
"Anne Portrait of Clevies" by Hans Holbein
I don't know if Holbein PUA is too powerful, or his aesthetic taste is too strong, this master can be said to have dominated the aesthetic trend of the British court at that time, from the queen to the jewelry and clothing. He even wrote a Jewelry Book that influenced jewelry design throughout the Renaissance. Known as Holbeinesque, his style became one of the representatives of the Renaissance jewelry style, and later made a comeback in 1860 and became "popular" again.
The metal jewelry box manuscript in the Jewelry Book was designed for the family of Sir Thomas Wyatt
The round pendant manuscript in the Jewelry Book was designed for Queen Jane Seymour and King Henry VIII
Do you think this painter is very powerful? Anyway, it must belong to the category of emotional intelligence and high skills, in order to open all the way in the changeable court, and the glory is constant. Hans Holbein came from a German family of painters who specialized in portraiture. He started working in Basel, Switzerland, but because of the factional rivalry of religions at that time, he did not want to take a clear side and ran to England.
Because this painter is good at showing "materiality" rather than "divinity", in other words, very good at showing the true texture of things, he is the kind of painter who would let the protagonist sit instead of the kneeling position required by the church at the time in order to show the personality of the character. Therefore, in England, a country where monarchy was above theocracy, he completely freed himself from the shackles of religion and ushered in the peak of his career, becoming one of the greatest portraitists of the 16th century.
"Ambassadors" by Hans Holbein
Therefore, Henry VIII is not only Holbein's "gold lord party", but also the patron of his artistic creation. He is able to express his strengths, especially in the depiction of fabrics and jewelry details, showing an unparalleled flair. Therefore, he also compiled his jewelry design manuscript into a volume, which is now in the British Museum's "Jewelry Book", which not only became the best blueprint for later generations to study Renaissance jewelry, but also formed a school of its own, forming Holbein-style jewelry.
Portrait of Catherine Howard by Hans Holbein
Very few Holbein-designed jewels have survived today (like many Renaissance jewels, they were likely melted down so that gold could be sold or reused), but the artist's precious design manuscripts in the Jewelry Book have been left behind as Henry VIII's legacy, giving posterity the opportunity to learn from them.
Holbein design manuscript in the Jewelry Book
Holbein-style jewelry became popular in 1860 because the aristocracy of the time was particularly popular for masquerade balls, so you know, vintage-style jewelry was all the rage. At that time, Renaissance jewelry was mainly in the Holbeine style - the central C position is a large cabochon, relief or portrait, surrounded by various scrolls or curls of gold and colored enamel, and a pear-shaped pearl or diamond-shaped diamond hangs below
Victorian Holbein style jewelry is the choice of many high society, the most representative piece is a set of jewelry commissioned by the Countess of Granville in 1856, which is composed of 7 pieces of jewelry including a crown, hairbrush, necklace, brooch, and bracelet.
It is named Devonshire Parure because of the 88 reliefs in the collection of the 3rd Duke of Devonshire. The Countess of Granville wore them to accompany her husband as an ambassador to Queen Victoria to the coronation of Tsar Alexander II.
Devonshire Parure 1856
John Brogden and Carlo Giuliano are the most famous jewelry masters of the Victorian Holbeinesque style, both based in London, both skilled in enamel, in fact, they are both fans of the "archaeological revival", from ancient Egypt to the Renaissance.
John Brogden
Carlo Giuliano
The main theme of the Napoleonic dynasty in France was the "nostalgic revival", and Napoleon III at the time promoted the "Renaissance" style, but combined with the previous popular relief jewelry, the most important court jeweler at that time, Froment Meurice, hired a large number of sculptors, majourns and goldsmiths to create a large number of Holbein-style jewelry with the theme of relief.
Froment Meurice 1870
In modern times, the Holbein style, although more niche, remains a source of inspiration for many jewelry designers, such as TEFAF regular Otto Jakob, a jewelry designer who loves to draw inspiration from history and has created works in the Holbein style.
Holbein-style brooch by Otto Jakob
Interestingly, he originally wanted to be a painter, only to become a jewelry designer, and was self-taught, probably destined to show his talent for three-dimensional creation, and his work was quickly noticed and collected by some artists.
Holbein-style brooch by Otto Jakob
Arguably the most unique of the legendary court painter/jewelry designers, this legendary painter has a style of jewelry that bears his name. Maybe the "top" artists of the Renaissance were so versatile~ If you like antique jewelry, will you buy a Holbein-style jewelry?
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