Medium
Etching, only state
Dimensions
Sheet: 9 15/16 in. × 7 in. (25.2 × 17.8 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1951
Accession Number
51.501.2144
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This etching, titled *Edward VI*, captures the likeness of Edward VI, King of England and Ireland, who ascended the throne at just nine years old in 7. Created in 1650 by master engraver Wenceslauslar after an original portrait by Hans Hol the Younger—renowned court painter to Henry VIII—it preserves the Tudor monarch's poised demeanor amid the opulent fabrics and regal attire typical of Renaissance portraiture. Holbein's original, likely from the 1540s, exemplifies the precise, psychological depth of Northern Renaissance art, emphasizing status through intricate details like fur-trimmed sleeves and a commanding gaze. Hollar's etching, the only known state, translates Holbein's oil painting into a print medium, allowing wider dissemination centuries later. Measuring about 10 by 7 inches, this intimate sheet highlights etching's fine lines and tonal subtlety, which Hollar mastered as a Bohemian-born virtuoso exiled in England. Produced post-Civil War, it evokes nostalgia for the Tudor era during a turbulent Restoration period. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, this work bridges royal portraiture and printmaking innovation, offering visitors a window into 16th-century monarchy through 17th-century technique. A testament to enduring artistic legacy, it reminds us how prints democratized elite imagery.
About the Artist
Edward VI, King of England and Ireland|Hans Holbein the Younger|Wenceslaus Hollar (British|German|Bohemian) · 1537 |1497 |1607 –1553 |1543 |1677
British, Hampton Court Palace 1537–1553 Greenwich|German, Augsburg 1497/98–1543 London|Bohemian, Prague 1607–1677 London