Wauwatosa news. [volume] (Wauwatosa, Wis.) 1900-1948, 1909-05-21
FAMOUS HoLBEIN PORTRAIT, CHRIS
TINA OF DENMARK, DUCHESS
OF MILAN, THE LATEST.
WORTH WEIGHT IN GOLD.
Price Of sS3o,0o0 Paid to Duke of Nor
folk Not Considered Ex-
brilliant
PORTRAIT WAS PAINTED IN 1888

bestowed in the state collections of Eu-
rope. or in noble houses equally tena-
couS. that America may not hope Sc
riously 10 increase her store of i'm
portant7 Old masters Nevertheless.
some dazzling prize Swims into the
ken Of the collector every now
and then. Felasquezs famous We
nus" got into the market nj last
and might perhaps, have come to
This country if one of our collectors had
really given his mind TO outtlankiug the
patriots who saw to its purchase for
The National gallery. The dispersal of
the han collection enriched more than
one American gallery; in fact, some Of
his most precious pieces are now on this
side Of the Atlantic, notably Rembrandt :
odd Woman Cutting Her Nails" ana
Ghirlandajo's "Iioyanna Degi Albizzi
And now HUlbein's Christina of Den
mark, Duchess of Milan" has been
Ioosed from its age-long mornings.
There is nothing surprising about tho
price of S33O00O which the Colnag his are
said 10 have paid the Duke of Norfolk
for his painting, nor would the million
aire who offered a higher sum for it
show any more courage than is shown iii
the purchase of a government bond at a
reasonable market price. OF Il Holbein
like the Christina" it may be said-it
it be said of any work of art--that it is
worth its weight in gold The National
gallery it appears, has an option on the
painting. 1t may purchase it within a
month for S330O00. The government
cannot now afford this luxury, but it has
offered to contribute $4,000 toward the
sum needed, and a strenuous effort will
be made through public and private sub
ScrlptlOnS to save the masterpiece for
England. OF course, there is talk of it's
finding buyer in the United States If
this comes true we may congratulate
ourselves on an acquisition of extra
ordinary significance.
This portrait, which is e painted on
panel, is ) feet 10 inches in height and
> feet inches wide. The figure wears
mourning robe, trimmed with sable
over black satin dress. The head is
closely fitted with a black hood. The
background is blue, color which Hot
bein seems to have used for the purpose
with special enthusiasm. since it appears
again and again in his works. The por-
trait dates from 1888, early in the period
Of Holbein's service as court painter to
Henry Will Gerald S. Davies, his def
mite biographer, thus refers to Christina
and the making of her portrait:
The girl had been married at 10 to
francesca Maria, of Milan, and was now
a widow at 16. There had been much
searchings by the ambassadors of many
courts for a new wife for Henry. Among
those who had been suggested for the
high but perilous position were Mary of
Guise. the widowed Countess of Egg
mOnd and daughter of the house of
Brederode. Henry, who had professed
himself somewhat coy, nevertheless had
made the proposal to CastilOn, the
French ambassador, that a selection of
French princesses should be brought to
Calais for his inspection-an unseemly
proposal which Castillon met by a still
more unseemly answer. Finally, Hut
ton. the ambassador, made so favorable
~ E u,
that Henry sent Holbein in company
with Philip Hobbie (who figures among
the Windsor drawings to Brussels,
where, on March u, at l O'clock in the
afternoon--it is rarely that we can date
portrait 50 accurately as this-the
Young duchess stood for her portrait.
by 4 o'clock that afternoon HOlbein
had completed the sketch-so we must
consider it-from which the wonderful
portrait was painted. We are not, in
deed, told that Holbein completed a pre-
llminary sketch, but one may feel prac
tically assured that he did so. 1t is
most unlikely that he would have COM
mcnced what he must have known was
to be a very brief sitting on panel of
the size which we now see. At Wind
Sor indeed, there is preserved a small
panel which has been thought to be this
sketch, but if it have any relationship
with this portrait of Christina it is more
hand. All that we are able to say is
that it is most probable that an original
sketch existed. and was of smaller size,
and that. according to his custom, HOl-
helm painted the larger portrait from it.
For we hear that when Hutton saw the
sketch that afternoon he was 50 delight
ed with its perfection that he at once
dispatched q messenger to recall por-
trait by another artist which was already
on its way to England, since, adds
Hutton. sit was but slubbered in com
parisOn," Now to suppose that a panel
of the size of the Arundel portrait could
have been brought to this state of per-
lection in three hours is, of course, out
Of the question.
The art of portraiture can 90 no fur
Their The young girl, bright, witty, fas-
chatting. and vet with lust the shade
OF sorrow over her, stands at full length
before us-she was Exceeding tall and
graceful we are told--in her widow
weeds. Hutton speaks with enthusiasm
nt her smile, which. whenever she used
H. brought two little pits upon her cheeks
and one upon her chin which became
her exceedingly. But the smile has al
most faded from her face as she stands
neryously playing with her glove between
her slender fingers. The figure is at once
EIFl-llke and womanly: the face at once
grave for the moment and ready to
sparkle into vivacity the next. 1t is SO
all our sympathies are quickeued rs we
stand before it. She was not destined
To add her name to the list of English
queens. and she died later, and for aught
one knows happier. as Duchess of L0r-
Falne, Something went wrong with the
political situation ana Charles ', turned
ms back upon the match. Everyone
SHOWS the witty Sayin@-evaently the
afterthouEht of some other brIin-Which
Tradition has put into her mouth. that
Ii She had had two heads one should he
ut the disposal Of his majesty. She said.
of course, nothing Of the kind yet if
what was toid of her bright and lively
disposition was true, the moral If the
imagined answer was sound for her. and
she might If she had become Queen Of
EnGiand all innocent have found her
way. sooner or later. 10 Tower Hill
jAr,ugh Der merry nature
W hen H0lbein painted this portrait he
VAS IN the fulness of his powers. His
craftsmanship was never drmer or finer.
ms color was never richer or purer.