Portrait of Jane Seymour

Whereas Holbein himself painted the portrait of Jane Seymour now in Vienna, this panel, done on more or less exactly the same pattern, was probably the work of his studio. This is the conclusion to be drawn from the very hard modeling, which is not typical of Holbein's hand. We can only speculate who the client was, for it was not just the Seymour family who had an interest in the mother of the heir to the throne.

Suggested listening (streaming mp3, 12 minutes): Gaetano Donizetti: Anna Bolena, Act II, Jane Seymour's aria