When the artist Hans Holbein the Younger came to England to seek work in 1526, he had the advantage of a letter of introduction from the Dutch scholar Erasmus to present to Sir Thomas More. The eminent lawyer and courtier wrote back: “Your painter friend, my dear Erasmus, is a wonderful artist. I fear he will not find English soil as rich and fertile as he had hoped. But I shall do my best to make sure it is not completely barren.”
More was as good as his word, commissioning Holbein to paint portraits of himself and his family, and introducing him to acquaintances. The artist’s reputation quickly spread and in the coming years English soil would prove extraordinarily fertile as Holbein painted the elite of the Tudor court. Capturing likenesses with compelling realism (and some flattery) his
