To go with the Holbein embroidered cuffs that I recently made, I have put together another Holbein pattern combination to embroider on to the collar of a partlet.
I have taken the pattern from John's collar from 1528 (pictured above) and added the crosses on the edges from Jane Seymour's cuffs from 1536-37 (pictured below).
This is the combined Holbein pattern that I have put together for my next embroidery project.
Since only the first part of John's collar is visible in Holbein's painting, I entered in my own opinion of how the patterns would have been connected further along on his collar. I tested it out with different patterns, including placing the tails side by side (which looked too cluttered) and by placing a diamond between the tails (which still looked cluttered). A line is very simple, but I think it looks more even and pleasing to the eye. What do you think?
When I mention Holbein, I am referring to Hans Holbein the Younger. He was a court painter in the court of King Henry VIII until his death in 1543.
Hans Holbein the Younger painted a portrait of Jane Seymour, 3rd wife of
King Henry VIII of England, around 1536. In this portrait, her cuffs
have a decorative blackwork embroidery pattern on them. Which pattern
interpretation do you believe is the embroidery pattern found on Jane's
cuffs?
Jane's primary talent was embroidery. Although none of her embroidery
survives today, it is quite possible that the embroidery pattern
featured on her cuffs in Holbein's portrait of her was of her own
making. In Tudor England, it was common for women of her status to
embroider their own shifts, as well as their husband's shirts.
Hans Holbein the Younger was a 16th century European painter, just like
his older brother Ambrosius and his father, Hans the Elder. If you hear
the term 'Holbein stitch', it is in reference to Hans the Younger. From
his friendship with Erasmus, he had a letter of introduction and found
himself in England to eventually become a court painter in the court of
King Henry VIII of England. Compared to other artists at the time,
Holbein painted numerous portraits with blackwork embroidery in them.
Let’s play a game of guessing whether the person in the 16th century
Holbein portrait was wearing silk or wool thread for their blackwork
embroidery!
In the 16th century, silk thread was popular for blackwork embroidery…
for those above a certain station in life. During King Henry VIII’s
reign, he passed 4 Acts of Apparel: in 1510, 1514, 1515, and 1533. These
laws regulated what people were and were not allowed to wear to help
define their hierarchical status within society, or face the
consequences of being fined for disobeying the law. These laws continued
and were updated through Queen Elizabeth I’s reign.
As of 1533, no man under the degree of a Baron’s son or of a Knight,
except for if he had earned
yearly in lands or tenements, rents fees or annuities to his own use for
term of his life or in the right of his wife two hundred pounds over
all charges shall wear any manner of embroidery with gold, silver or
silk in any part of their apparel.
So, if a person could not wear silk embroidery, what could they use?
Cotton or linen may have been used, but wool was probably the most
popular among those who didn’t qualify for silk embroidery (because wool
was the most popular fabric due to the successful wool trade).
So… with Holbein’s portraits with blackwork embroidery in them, let’s
playing a guessing game of if they’re wearing silk or wool! Since King
Henry VIII was the king of England, this game will apply only to
Holbein’s sketches and portraits of English subjects. I’ll give a few
details about the person, wait a moment to see if you can guess the
answer, and then I’ll post the answer on the screen. Ready?
Works Cited:
- Holbein, Hans. “Mrs Jane Small, formerly Mrs Pemberton.” V&A
Museum.
- Holbein d. J., Hans. “Jane Seymour.” Kunst Historisches Museum Wien.
- Holbein, Hans the Younger. “Double Portrait of Sir Thomas Godsalve and
His Son John.” Web Gallery of Art.
- Holbein, Hans the Younger. “Portrait of Henry Howard, the Earl of
Surrey.” Web Gallery of Art.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Elizabeth, Lady Audley.” Royal Collection
Trust.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Katherine, Duchess of Suffolk.” Royal
Collection Trust.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Lady Margaret (Bacon) Butts.” Isabella
Stewart Gardner Museum.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Margaret Roper (Margaret More).” The Met
Museum.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Anne Cresacre.” Royal Collection Trust.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Portrait of Robert Cheseman.” Mauritshuis.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Thomas, 2nd Baron Vaux.” Royal Collection
Trust.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Thomas Howard, Third Duke of Norfolk.”
Royal Collection Trust.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Edward Fiennes de Clinton.” Royal
Collection Trust.
- Holbein d. J., Hans. “The Family of Thomas More.” KunstMuseum Basel.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Queen Anne Boleyn.” Royal Collection
Trust.
Hans Holbein the Younger was a 16th century European painter, just like
his older brother Ambrosius and his father, Hans the Elder. If you hear
the term 'Holbein stitch', it is in reference to Hans the Younger. From
his friendship with Erasmus, he had a letter of introduction and found
himself in England to eventually become a court painter in the court of
King Henry VIII of England. Compared to other artists at the time,
Holbein painted numerous portraits with blackwork embroidery in them.
Works Cited:
- Foister, Susan. “Holbein - Technique and Imitation.” National Portrait Gallery.
- Holbein, Hans. “Self-Portrait.” Uffizi Gallery.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “An Unidentified Man.” Royal Collection Trust.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Edward VI as a Child.” National Gallery of Art.
- Holbein the Younger, Hans. “Elizabeth, Lady Rich.” Royal Collection Trust.
- Holbein d. J., Hans. “Jane Seymour.” Kunst Historisches Museum Wien.
- Studio of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Portrait of Jane Seymour.” Mauritshuis.
- Studio of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Edward, Prince of Wales.” Denver Art Museum.
- Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Edward VI, when Duke of Cornwall.” The Met Museum.
- Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Henry VIII.” National Museums Liverpool.
- Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Lady Lee.” The Met Museum.
- Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Lady Rich.” The Met Museum.
- Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Portrait of a Man.” The Met Museum.
- Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger. “Portrait of a Young Woman.” The Met Museum.
In 16th century England, blackwork embroidery started out as a geometric
counted double-running stitch, also known as Spanish stitch and/or
Holbein stitch. However, by the 1540's, the curvilinear swirly, floral
embroidery, also referred to as blackwork, began to gain popularity over
the previous geometric embroidery.
In this video, I discuss a brief history about the origins of blackwork
and when it became popular in England. I provide various examples of
what is included in this category known as blackwork embroidery.
This is a compilation of 3 embroidery patterns found on 3 different
Holbein patterns: the cross, the ocean wave, and the center pattern. The
cross pattern can be found near the edge of Jane Seymour's cuffs with
blackwork embroidery, also known as Holbein Stitch, from Hans Holbein
the Younger's painting from 1536. The ocean wave pattern was found on
the 16th century collar of the Noble Boy with a Marmoset. The center
pattern: In 1526, Hans Holbein the Younger painted the Darmstadt
Madonna, which included Anna Meyer in the bottom right corner of the
portrait. Anna had on a white dress with horizontal bands of blackwork
embroidery on it (per the Textile Research Centre).
Hans Holbein the Younger was a European painter, just like his older
brother Ambrosius and his father, Hans the Elder. If you hear the term
'Holbein stitch', it is in reference to Hans the Younger. From his
friendship with Erasmus, he had a letter of introduction and found
himself in England to eventually become a court painter in the court of
King Henry VIII of England. Compared to other artists at the time,
Holbein painted numerous portraits with blackwork embroidery in them.
Holbein stitch, also referred to as double-running stitch or Spanish
stitch, is a reversible counted stitch used in early 16th century
blackwork embroidery.
Above is my pattern compilation of the 3 Holbein patterns.
Above is the original pattern from Jane Seymour's cuffs. This was the inspiration of the pattern that I compiled.
Above is the Noble Boy with a Marmoset and the original Holbein pattern on his collar.
Above is Anna Meyer from the Darmstadt Madonna. Also above is the original Holbein pattern at Anna's elbow.
With the embroidery done on the body of the cuffs, the cuffs have now
been hemmed (hand-stitched). Now, I'm extending the embroidery (Holbein
stitch) to the edge of the cuffs.
My progress video from the other day explaining this project:
