The SECRETS hidden in The Ambassadors by Hans Holbein | famous Tudor painting

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What SECRET MESSSAGES are hidden in one of Hans Holbein’s most famous works of art, The Ambassadors? Painted in 1533 during the reign of Henry VIII and depicting Jean de Dinteville and Georges de Selve, The Ambassadors has everything from a creepy anamorphic skull in the foreground, which can only be viewed properly from a certain angle, to scientific and musical instruments and discreet lines of text. So what are the hidden meanings in this painting and how should we decipher The Ambassadors? What is the geographical Holbein globe showing and how does it help to identify one of the sitters? What does the celestial globe placed elsewhere in the painting mean, what is the musical composition, why is the lute string broken, what should we make of the time keeping devices and the open arithmetic book and where is the little hidden image of Christ on the cross? Why is the skull placed in such a difficult to view place and is the painting meant to signify the religious disputes occurring across Europe at this time as the Reformation raged?

The painting now hangs in the National Gallery in London, opposite another of Holbein’s works, his portrait of Christina of Denmark, Duchess of Milan and Lorraine. It was controversially restored in 1996 with some claiming that the skull was damaged in the process but remains a highly popular image. It had a whole life before arriving at the Gallery though and as part of this art history documentary from History Calling, I’ll be tracing its provenance for you, as well as discussing its many layers of meaning. I hope you enjoy this video on one of the world’s most famous paintings.
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