Sir Thomas More and His Family is a lost painting by Hans Holbein the Younger, created circa 1527 during Holbein’s first visit to England. The work depicted the noted statesman and scholar Sir Thomas More, his immediate family, and other members of his household. While the original painting was destroyed in a fire in 1752, its composition is known through a number of surviving copies and studies.
Background and Commission
editHolbein arrived in England in 1526, introduced to Sir Thomas More through the Dutch humanist Erasmus of Rotterdam. Holbein’s portrait of More and his family is considered one of his most significant English works, reflecting both his technical skill and the intellectual values of More’s household. The portrait was commissioned at a time when More was serving as Lord Chancellor to Henry VIII and is thought to represent the family’s piety, learning, and civic responsibility—core values of Renaissance humanism.
Description and Composition
editThe painting depicted Sir Thomas More surrounded by his family in a domestic setting, an innovative composition for its time. The figures are arranged in what art historian Roy Strong described as a “conversation piece,” with each family member shown engaging in intellectual or scholarly activities. This format, where subjects interact with each other rather than the viewer, was ahead of its time and became a model for future English portraiture. Holbein’s precise and naturalistic style captured not only physical likenesses but also the personalities and inner lives of his subjects.
Surviving Copies and Versions
editAlthough the original painting was destroyed, several sixteenth-century copies and preparatory sketches have survived. One of the most notable copies was produced by Rowland Lockey in 1592. Lockey’s versions, held in collections such as Nostell Priory and the National Portrait Gallery, provide valuable insights into Holbein’s composition. These copies closely follow the original design, with slight variations in the arrangement of the figures and details of the setting.
A preparatory drawing by Holbein for the painting, now in the collection of the Kunstmuseum Basel (Kupferstichkabinett Inv. 1662.31), also survives. This study offers a glimpse of Holbein’s creative process and the care he took in capturing the likenesses of More’s family.
The Fire and Destruction
editIn 1752, the original painting was destroyed in a fire at Schloss Kremsier (Kroměříž Castle), the Moravian residence of Carl von Liechtenstein, archbishop of Olomouc. The fire also destroyed a significant number of other valuable artworks housed at the castle. The loss of Holbein’s original is considered a major cultural tragedy, as it was regarded as one of the finest examples of early English Renaissance portraiture.Guy, John (2009). ‘‘A Daughter’s Love: Thomas More and his Dearest Meg’’. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p.172.[1]
Legacy and Cultural Influence
editRoy Strong, a prominent British art historian, called Sir Thomas More and His Family “arguably the greatest and most innovative work of [Holbein’s] English period.” Strong also described it as “the earliest portrait conversation piece in English painting, at least a century ahead of its time,” and noted that “its destruction means we lost the greatest single visual artefact to epitomize the aims and ideals of the early Renaissance in England.”[1]
Despite the loss, the painting has left a lasting impact on the development of portraiture, particularly in England. Its composition, focusing on intellectual and familial relationships, set a precedent for future depictions of domestic life. The portrait continues to be referenced in discussions of Renaissance art and the portrayal of humanist ideals.
See Also
edit• Hans Holbein the Younger • Thomas More • English Renaissance • Nostell Priory • Rowland Lockey
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NPG version
editSir Thomas More and Family in the National Portrait Gallery is a painting that was once part of the Lenthall pictures.[2]
The picture
editSir Thomas More and Family is one of two near life-size copies by Rowland Lockey[3] of an original by Holbein that was lost in a fire in the 18th century.[4] It is dated 1593; Holbein died in 1543.[5] 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[6] the sitters as:
- Elizabeth Dauncey (née More) (1506–1564), Second daughter of Sir Thomas More.
- Cecily Heron (née More) (born 1507–1615[7]), Youngest daughter of Sir Thomas More.
- Anne More (née Cresacre) (1511–1577), Wife of John More, son of Sir Thomas More.
- Cresacre More (1572–1649), Great-grandson and biographer of Sir Thomas More.
- Sir John More (circa 1451–1530), in red robes of office as a Judge of the King's Bench; father of Sir Thomas More.
- John More (1510–1547), Son of Sir Thomas More.
- John More (1557–1599?), Eldest son of Thomas More II.
- Maria More (née Scrope) (1534–1607), Wife of Thomas More II.
- Sir Thomas More (1478–1535) wearing his official Tudor Collar of Esses. This part reproduces Holbein's famous portrait of More now at the Frick Collection.[8]
- Thomas More II (1531–1606), Grandson of Sir Thomas More.
- Margaret Roper (1505–1544), Daughter of Sir Thomas More.
The copy from the Lenthall collection has been described as “the most accomplished extant version”.[9]
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.[8]
Provenance
editThe 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,[10] but by 1727 it was at Burford Priory.[11] 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.[12] It was the centre piece in the exhibition, The King's Good Servant, at the National Portrait Gallery in 1977.[13]
Nostell Priory version
editThis section needs expansion. You can help by adding to it. (March 2017) |
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.[14] It includes other members of his household: More's secretary peeking through a door, his "fool" and his pet monkey.[8]
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.[15]
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.[16]
Other versions
editA cabinet miniature version of this portrait c. 1594 with different details, also likely to be by Lockey, is in the Victoria and Albert Museum.[17][18]
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.[19]
Holbein or More sent a small preparatory drawing to Erasmus, which survives.[8]
Cultural influences
editThe 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:[20]
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
editReferences
edit- ^ a b Strong, Roy (1990). Lost Treasures of Britain: Five Centuries of Creation and Destruction. London: Viking. ISBN 978-0-670-83383-2.
- ^ The English Counties Delineated, Volume 2, Thomas Moule, 1837
- ^ Cooper, Tarnya (2008). A Guide to Tudor & Jacobean Portraits. National Portrait Gallery. p. 38.
- ^ UK and Ireland Genealogy
- ^ A biographical and critical dictionary of painters and engravers, Michael Bryan, page 337
- ^ NPG catalogue entry
- ^ www.myheritage.nl https://www.myheritage.nl/names/cecily_more. Retrieved 11 August 2024.
{{cite web}}: Missing or empty|title=(help) - ^ a b c d 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.
- ^ Eade, Jane; Taylor, David (2015). "Sir Thomas More's Family". National Trust Historic Houses and Collections Annual. Apollo. p. 9.
- ^ 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.
- ^ Tudor and Jacobean Portraits, Roy Strong, HMSO, 1969
- ^ Lewis, 1998, p.32
- ^ Lewis, 1998, p.32
- ^ National Trust: Sir Thomas More and his Family (after Hans Holbein the Younger)
- ^ Lewis 1998 Thomas More Family Group Portraits After Holbein
- ^ 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.
- ^ V&A Museum
- ^ Lewis, Lesley (1998). The Thomas More Family Group Portraits After Holbein. Gracewing, Fowler Wright Books. p. 9. ISBN 0852444664.
- ^ Mantel, Hilary (2010). Wolf Hall. Picador. p. 210.