ADAM EAKER:
This is probably the most iconic of all portraits included in this exhibition. It’s the one that more than any other has shaped the popular imagination of Henry VIII.

NARRATOR:
Curator Adam Eaker.

ADAM EAKER:
It’s painted by Hans Holbein the Younger, who is the great portraitist of Henry VIII’s court and it’s the only surviving portrait of Henry VIII painted in Holbein’s own hand.

NARRATOR:
As a young man, Henry was famed for his good looks and sporting prowess, and he was very proud of this reputation. His major rival was François I of France. The Venetian ambassador to the English court recorded this vivid snippet of conversation with Henry:

MALE VOICE:
His Majesty came into our arbor and said, ‘Talk with me awhile. The King of France, is he as tall as I am?’ I told him there was but little difference. He continued, ‘Is he as stout?’ I said he was not; and he then enquired, ‘What sort of legs has he?’ I replied ‘Spare.’ Whereupon he opened the front of his doublet, and placing his hand on his thigh said, ‘Look here; and I have also a good calf to my leg.’

NARRATOR:
This portrait may have been intended as a gift for his rival, François.

NARRATOR:
The details offer an ostentatious display of Henry’s wealth. Even the materials used were splendid.

ADAM EAKER:
It incorporates actual gold, to show the cloth-of-gold of Henry VIII’s extremely sumptuous attire. And then this bright blue background is made of ultramarine, which was perhaps the most expensive pigment an artist could use at the time. So, this is a painting absolutely fit for a king.

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