IMITATIONS OF ORIGINAL DRAWINGS BY HANS HOLBEIN, IN THE COLLECTION OF HIS MAJESTY, For the Portraits of Illustrious Persons of the Court of Henry VIII, With Biographical Tracts

[Henry VIII; Holbein, Hans, artist]; Chamberlaine, John

Edité par London Published by John Chamberlaine, the Keeper of the King's Drawings and Medals. Printed by William Bulmer and Co., Shakespeare Printing Office 1812

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2 volumes. First Edition of the century, First Issue, the second edition overall. A RARE EXAMPLE WITH THE PLATES BOTH IN COLOURED AND UNCOLOURED STATE, THUS WITH DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF PLATES NORMALLY ENCOUNTERED. With 84 hand-coloured plates and 84 plates uncoloured, all separately printed on India paper and tipped onto full-page leaves, each facing the other, the plates with protective leaf separating the two, each image with two variations, mezzotint portraits of Holbein and his wife, a total of 168 illustrations on full-page plates, four plates dated from the first printing in 1792, the other 164 dated 1812 as with the publishing date. The plates are printed on a variety of papers, slightly different from one another--grey, buff, white, lavender and pink. Folio, 34.5 x 2, beautifully bound in full red morocco gilt extra, the spines with gilt tooled raised bands separating the compartments which are elaborately gilt decorated within triple gilt filleted frames, gilt stippling to the borders of the frames, lettered in gilt in one compartment, the covers beautifully gilt decorated in all-over designs, the borders with gilt stippled lines enclosing three gilt filleted borders surrounding an elaborate gilt inner border of floral tooling, bordered again by a stippled and multi-filleted gilt frame, the whole surrounding elaborate and large gilt tooled decorations at the inner corners and along the rules, the edges gilt ruled, the turnovers gilt rolled, marbled endleaves, all edges gilt, very elaborate and beautifully preserved binding work. unpaginated. Fine copies, beautifully preserved, very light wear or age evidence to the bindings which remain strong, the pages and plates all in good order, some very occasional light foxing to the papers as is typical, the colours remain vibrant and as printed, the giltwork on the bindings is in very pleasing condition, a very handsome set indeed. FIRST EDITION AND AN UNUSUALLY SPECIAL COPY BOUND IN FULL RED MOROCCO GILT EXTRA, WITH THE PLATES PRINTED ON INDIA PAPER IN BOTH COLOURS AND BLACK AND WHITE, A COPY WITH DOUBLE THE NUMBER OF PLATES USUALLY ENCOUNTERED. Hans Holbein the Younger; c. 1497 between 7 October and 29 November 1543) was a German-Swiss painter and printmaker who worked in a Northern Renaissance style, and is considered one of the greatest portraitists of the 16th century. He also produced religious art, satire, and Reformation propaganda, and he made a significant contribution to the history of book design. He is called "the Younger" to distinguish him from his father Hans Holbein the Elder, an accomplished painter of the Late Gothic school. Holbein was born in Augsburg but worked mainly in Basel as a young artist. At first, he painted murals and religious works, and designed stained glass windows and illustrations for books from the printer Johann Froben. He also painted an occasional portrait, making his international mark with portraits of humanist Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam. Holbein travelled to England in 1526 in search of work with a recommendation from Erasmus. He was welcomed into the humanist circle of Thomas More, where he quickly built a high reputation. He returned to Basel for four years, then resumed his career in England in 1532 under the patronage of Anne Boleyn and Thomas Cromwell. By 1535, he was King's Painter to Henry VIII. In this role, he produced portraits and festive decorations, as well as designs for jewellery, plate, and other precious objects. His portraits of the royal family and nobles are a record of the court in the years when Henry was asserting his supremacy over the Church of England. Holbein's art has sometimes been called realist, since he drew and painted with a rare precision. His portraits were renowned in their time for their likeness, and it is through his eyes that many famous figures of his day are pictured today, such as Erasmus and More. He was never content with outward appearance, however; he embedded layers of symbolism,

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Détails bibliographiques

• Titre: IMITATIONS OF ORIGINAL DRAWINGS BY HANS HOLBEIN, IN THE COLLECTION OF HIS MAJESTY, For the Portraits of Illustrious Persons of the Court of Henry VIII, With Biographical Tracts
• Éditeur: London Published by John Chamberlaine, the Keeper of the King's Drawings and Medals. Printed by William Bulmer and Co., Shakespeare Printing Office 1812
• Reliure: Couverture rigide
• Édition: Edition originale