Art Eyewitness Review: Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life at the Morgan Library and Museum

 Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life 

The Morgan Library & Museum, New York City

September 12, 2025 - January 4, 2026

Reviewed by Ed Voves

The 1993 discovery in northern Israel of fragments of an ancient monument thrilled scholars of ancient history and people devoted to the study of the Holy Bible. The Tel Dan inscription wasn't much to look at, pieces of gray stone inscribed with words in the Aramaic language, dating to nearly three thousand years ago.

The inscription itself was a different matter. Among the words chiseled into the stone was the title of the dynastic rulers of the Kingdom of Judah: "the House of David." It was the first archaeological confirmation of the legendary, giant-slaying King David, revered for centuries afterwards.

The Morgan Library and Museum has just opened a fascinating exhibition devoted to the reverence for King David during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance. Sing a New Song surveys a thousand years of history, from the last years of the Western Roman Empire to the Reformation of the 1500's. At every point, we find the presence the of the indomitable David.

Lorenzo Monaco, King David as Psalmist, painted in Florence,1408-1410 

Why the medieval-era David? What was the key factor in the continuing adulation for a long-dead monarch? Was it his courageous example in defeating the mighty Goliath with only a sling-shot - or something more?

Indeed, it was another of David's accomplishments which kept his reputation alive. It was a book of 150 poems which Jews and Christians alike believed the harp-playing David had composed and sung himself.

The Psalms.

The word psalm derives from psaillein, the Greek verb form "to pluck." This evolved into psalmos, "a song sung to harp music." 

Page from a Greek psalter, known as Bodmer 24,

 created in Egypt, ca. 225-325

Since Greek was the common language of many ethnic groups of the Roman Empire in the eastern Mediterranean area, psalmos gained a widespread usage and was adapted by the Latin-speaking western regions.

The indelible image associated with psalm comes, not from etymology, but from the folk memory of the brave Hebrew shepherd boy and, later, deeply-flawed king of Judah. David is the first actual hero known to history (thanks to the Tel Dan inscription). Achilles, Hector and Odysseus may have lived and fought in a war at Troy. But David did live, 1040-970 B.C., and did compose hymns to Yahweh which we call psalms.

 Young David, as depicted in the Crusader Bible, 1244-1254

History, especially that relating to the Bible, is maddeningly complicated. We must acknowledge that David composed several of the 150 Psalms, but not all. Most were inspired by him but composed by other poets, sometimes centuries later.

Christians and Jews during the Middle Ages believed that David was the author of ALL of the Psalms. Since the medieval era was the great Age of Faith, we will bow to their convictions and focus our attention on the magnificent exhibition at the Morgan Library and Museum.

             Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

Gallery view of Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life

Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life is a sterling example of the Morgan curatorial staff at their best. Such a multi-faceted exhibition, combining religion and art, word and image is a trademark of this great institution. No one presents exhibits of this complexity with greater skill and insight than the Morgan.

            Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

Gallery view of Sing a New Song, showing a medieval-style"cut-out"

Sing a New Song took seven years to develop, design and mount, much of the time and difficulty due to effects of the Covid-19 pandemic. The "team effort" was led by Roger Wieck, the department head of the Morgan Library's incomparable collection of medieval manuscripts.

In his remarks at the press preview of a Sing a New Song, Wieck, referred to a particularly beautiful, hand-written book of psalms, known as the Lewis Psalter.  This illuminated manuscript is on loan to the Morgan from the Rare Book Department of the Free Library of Philadelphia and Wieck was clearly delighted to present it.

           Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

Roger Wieck, Department Head of Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts at the Morgan Library and Museum

 Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

The Lewis Psalter, Scenes from the Passion of Christ, ca. 1225-30

"To have the opportunity to hold the Lewis Psalter," Wieck proclaimed, "is like having Chartres Cathedral in your hands."

This remark is very astute for two reasons. The Lewis Psalter dates to the Gothic era or the High Middle Ages.This was the golden age of cathedral building, as well as creating illuminated manuscripts. Most of these splendidly illustrated books give a prominent place to pictures of David vs. Goliath, the latter always being depicted in the chain-mail fighting gear of knights of the contemporary era. 

   Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

David and Goliath from the Bible Historiale, ca. 1325

Magnificent devotional books like the Bible Historiale (above) in which David, clad in gold in the lower left hand-corner, takes aim at the hulking Goliath, were not the exclusive property of the Christian Church. The Morgan exhibition presents a Hebrew illuminated manuscript, the Carcassone Bible (1422). This handsome volume is comparable in the quality of its written text, the handwork of Simon ben Rabbi Samuel, and the beauty of its illustrations to Christian books of the same period.  

Simon ben Rabbi Samuel (copyist), The Carcassone Bible (1422)

The second point to Roger Wieck's remark that holding an illuminated manuscript like the Lewes Psalter "is like having Chartres Cathedral in your hands" was literally true during the Middle Ages. 

Jean Poyer (illuminator), The Hours of Henry VIII, showing

  St. Anne Instructing the Virgin, 1500

For devout people in medieval times, having the psalms at your disposal was to be able to worship God anywhere and everywhere. Whether you were part of a congregation at a cathedral or monastery, praying in your home or - as we will see - locked in a prison cell in the Tower of London, the Book of Psalms provided divine help to match your needs.

The illuminated manuscripts on view in Sing a New Song fall into four basic categories: psalters, books of hours, breviaries and primers. Psalms constituted vital components in each, particularly psalters. 

All 150 of the psalms were included in a psalter because the Christian clergy were required to read and pray all of them in a weekly ritual known as the Divine Office. The sequence varied according to the season of the Church year and the psalter was essential in keeping the correct order.

Initially, lavish pictures were seldom included in psalters. This can be seen in one of the most important works on view in the Morgan exhibit. It is relatively nondescript in appearance - compared with illuminated manuscripts from the Gothic era - but looks are deceiving, especially in the case of the Blickling Psalter.

The Blickling Psalter, ca. 730. This illustration shows Psalm 80: “ExultateDeo” (Rejoice to God) in Latin with Old English glosses.

The Blickling Psalter dates to the year 730, making it one of the oldest works in English literature. This is ironical since the main text is in Latin, written in a script known as i nsular majuscule which had been developed by Irish monks for the Book of Kells and then brought to their missionary outposts in the north of England. 

Scribes in England, most likely in Northumbria, composed this majestic work, now reduced to a fragment. They included explanatory glosses in between the lines of the Latin text. These words are in Old English, making the Blickling Psalter a vital source book for comprehending the development of the English language, as well as a testament to the rise of Christian faith in England.

The complex - and fascinating - details of the Blickling Psalter can be found in the "backstories" of most of the illuminated manuscripts on view in Sing a New Song. Likewise, the distinctions between a psalter and a book of hours provides vital insights into the rise of literacy and private devotion which reached new heights in the Gothic era. 

 Deirdre Jackson, Photo (2025) 

The Lodi Choirbook (1470-95) opened to the pages for Matins for Easter

Added to these important themes, there was the parallel development of music in medieval Europe. The Morgan exhibit highlights the role of music by displaying one of the large-format choir books which enabled psalms to be sung in powerful, emotion-charged accompaniment to the celebration of Christian Mass.

Sing a New Song has a millenium of history to narrate, with many details, especially of theology and religious practice, which may be unfamiliar to modern-day art lovers. To enlighten curious, perhaps puzzled, visitors to the exhibition,  Roger Wieck and his team, Diedre Jackson, Joshua O'Driscoll and Frederica Law-Turner have contributed essays to the exhibit catalog which are both instructive and enjoyable.

Like the illuminated manuscripts chronicled in its pages, the catalog of Sing a New Song, published by the D. Giles company, is truly a book to cherish. Sing a New Song is also a worthy counterpart to another Morgan/D.Giles collaboration, the Imperial Splendor exhibit (2021), which surveyed culture and religion in the Germanic realms of the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages.

Medieval people certainly cherished their psalters and books of hours. Psalms, however, were valued for more than their words of moral encouragement or consolation. For Christians and Jews they were a form of spiritual armor to help resist temptation and ward-off demons and devils.

Considering that King David had dismally failed to observe the sixth and ninth commandments in the case of Bathsheba, Christian clergyman must have struggled with using the all-too-human monarch as an exemplar of morality. 

 Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

Triumphant Christ, depicted on a Reliquary Panel, 11th-13th century

One technique, was to emphasize the role of Jesus, as a descendant of David, who was shown (as above) fulfilling the words of Psalm 90 (13). "Thou shalt walk upon the asp and the basilisk: and thou shalt trample under foot the lion and the dragon."

Another instance of using the psalms to thwart demons and devils was the Jewish practice in the Middle East, fifth to eighth centuries, of burying incantation bowls in the corners of homes and by doorways. These were inscribed with verses of the psalms, especially Psalm 90 (91) and stories of rabbis battling malign spirits.

 Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

Incantation bowls, from Nippur, Iraq, 5th-8th century

Given the many dangers faced by people during the Middle Ages, one should refrain from raising a bemused eyebrow at these practices. Human beings grasp at whatever comes to hand - or to mind - in times of crisis. 

For the medieval world, the greatest catastrophe came in 1347-48, when the Bubonic Plague ravaged Europe, the Middle East and North Africa. Prayer books and incantation bowls had little effect, as close to half of Europe's population succumbed to the dread disease.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) 

Memento Mori Rosary Terminal Bead,  ca. 1500-1525

The exhibit objects in the last gallery of Sing a New Song bear the mark of the Black Death. The image of death appeared on the pages of psalters, statues, paintings and religious objects. Death was an inescapable fact of life during the late Middle Ages and chanting psalms was often the only relief.

Hans Holbein the Younger, Sir Thomas More, 1527

For Sir Thomas More, imprisoned for resisting the usurpation of King Henry VIII as head of the Church of England, the Psalms were the inspiration for the poignant poems and essays he wrote while in the Tower of London.

The final book on display in Sing a New Song is not an illuminated manuscript. Rather, it is a prayer book printed in 1530 with the new movable type technology. A combination psalter and book of hours, it was used by Thomas More during his imprisonment and was likely the last book he read before going to the block on July 6, 1535.

 

Ed Voves, Photo (2025)

 Prayer book of Sir Thomas More, 1530

It was difficult for me to control my emotions while looking on the prayer book of the "Man for all Seasons." More wrote poetry in the margins of this book, including his "psalm-like prayer," now called A Godly Meditation. Excerpts from these meditations appear below: 

Give me Thy grace, good Lord, to set the world at naught; to set my mind fast upon thee; and not to hang upon the blast of men's mouths.

To bear the cross with Christ; to have the last things in remembrance; to have ever afore mine eye my death that is ever at hand; to make death no stranger to me; to foresee and consider the everlasting fire of hell; to pray for pardon before the Judge come. 

To think my most enemies my best friends; for the brethren of Joseph could never have done him so much good with their love and favour as they did him with their malice and hatred.

What better description for the Psalms can we have than "godly meditations"? 

Whatever language was used to write them and whether or not they are illustrated with hand-painted pictures is of secondary importance. These precious books of psalms, on view at the Morgan, are all godly meditations, written-down by many hands, but not by the hand of man alone.

***

Text and original photos: Copyright of Ed Voves, all rights reserved 

Introductory Image: The Windmill Psalter, England, London, late 13th century. Cantate Domino canticum novum (Ps. 97): Clerics Singing. Codex: 320 x 215 mm. Morgan MS M.102, fols. 99v-100r Purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan, 1902

Lorenzo Monaco (13-14) King David as Psalmist, painted in Italy, Florence, ca.1408-1410) Panel painting: 568 x 432 mm. Metropolitan Museum of Art, 65.14.

The Crusader Bible. Young David, one of four scenes in the life of King David, depicted on a page of the Crusader Bible, created in Paris, France, ca. 1244-1254. Single Leaf: 390 x 300 mm. Morgan  MS M.638, fol. 25v.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) Gallery view of Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life at the Morgan Library and Museum.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) Gallery view of Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life, showing a "cut-out"in the medieval Gothic style.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) Portrait of Roger Wieck, Department Head of Medieval and Renaissance Manuscripts of the Morgan Library and Museum.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) The Lewis Psalter, illuminated by the Leber Group, France, Paris, ca. 1225-30. Codex: 230 x 165 mm. Rare Book Department, Free Library of Philadelphia, Lewis MS E 185, fols. 14v–15r

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) David and Goliath from the Bible Historiale (French). Illuminated by the workshop of Richard and Jeanne de Montbaston. Codex: 425 x 310 mm. France, Paris, ca. 1325 The Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.323, fols. 1v–2r | Purchased by J. Pierpont Morgan, 1907.

Carcassone Bible, France, Avignon, 1422. Codex, written by Simon ben Rabbi Samuel for Vidal Astruc de Carcassone: 288 x 203 mm. Morgan MS G.48, fols. 438r-437v

Hours of Henry VIII. St. Anne Instructing the Virgin. Illuminated by Jean Poyer France, Tours, ca. 1500. Codex: 256 x 180 mm. The Morgan Library & Museum, MS H.8, fols. 186v–187r | Gift of the Heineman Foundation,1977

Blickling Psalter, England, ca. 730. Psalm 80: “Exultate Deo” (Rejoice to God) in Latin with Old English glosses. Codex: 306 x 230 mm. The Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.776, fols. 39v–40r | Purchased, 1932

Diedre Jackson, Photo (2025 Gallery view of Sing a New Song, showing the Lodi Book (Latin) opened to Resurrection (Matins for Easter. Created in Milan, ca. 1470-95. Codex: 560 x 410 mm. The Morgan Library & Museum, MS M.686, fols. 2v–3r | Purchased, before 1921.

Book cover illustration of Sing a New Song: the Psalms in Medieval Art and Life, courtesy of D. Giles, Ltd.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) Triumphant Christ on a Reliquary panel. Made in Belgium, Mosan workshop, late eleventh century (panel) and thirteenth century (frame). Silver, gilded silver, gilded copper, rock crystal, champlevé enamel and other materials: 585 x 380 x 50 mm. The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore, 57.519

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) Gallery view of Sing a New Song at the Morgan Library and Museum, showing Incantation bowls, inscribed in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic. From Iraq, Nippur, ca. fifth–seventh century. Penn Museum, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, B2923, B9009, B2945 | Penn Babylonian Expeditions, 1889-90.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) Front and back views of Memento Mori Rosary Terminal Bead, ca. 1500-1525. Made in Northern France or Flanders. Elephant ivory, with emerald pendant, silver-gilt mount: 136 x 40 x 43 mm. The Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, gift of J. Pierpont Morgan, 1917; 17.190.305

Hans Holbein the Younger. Sir Thomas More, 1527. Drawing in black and colored chalks, with outlines pricked for transfer: 39.8 x 29.9 cm.. Royal Collection Trust, England, RCIN 912268 Photo: © King Charles III 2025.

Ed Voves, Photo (2025) The Prayer Book of Sir Thomas More (Combined Psalter/Book of Hours: the Book of Hours section was printed in Paris by François Regnault, 1530. The Psalter section was printed by Franz Birckman in Paris, 1522) Codex: 220 mm (quarto) Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library, Yale University, New Haven, MS Vault More| Gift of Edwin J. Beinecke, Yale 1907, and Frederick W. Beinecke, Yale 1909

Art Eyewitness Review: The Tudors: Art and Majesty

 

The Tudors: Art and Majesty in Renaissance England

Metropolitan Museum of Art,

 October 10, 2022- January 8, 2023

Reviewed by Ed Voves

Original Photography by Anne  Lloyd

Roses are blooming in the Tisch Galleries, the special exhibition area of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There is just one variety of rose on view and it emits no fragrant scent. But almost everywhere you look in the Tisch Galleries, you will see this remarkable flower.

The Tudor Rose. 

Created as an emblem of a unified English nation, the Tudor Rose symbolized the return of peace to England, following a long, savage civil war during the 1400's. But roses have thorns, too. As the Tudor Dynasty, 1485-1603, strengthened its control of England, the Tudor Rose was used to project the power of mighty monarchs, Henry VIII and his daughter, Elizabeth I.

 The Tudors: Art and Majesty in Renaissance England is currently on view in the Met's Tisch Galleries until early January 2023. Following their reign over the Tisch Galleries, The Tudors will travel to Cleveland and San Francisco. Without exaggeration, this exhibition is an astounding "time machine" transporting art lovers back to the 1500's. 

Ed Voves, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty showing Michael Sittow's portrait of Mary Tudor, ca. 1514

Originally scheduled for the fall of 2020, the Met's 150th anniversary year, The Tudors: Art and Majesty presents a vast array of works of art, from sprawling wall-tapestries to gleaming silverplate to jem-like portraits created by Nicholas Hilliard, England's master of the Miniature.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022)

    Gallery view of The Tudors: Art & Majesty showing The “Sea-                 Dog” Table, ca. 1575, and The Division of the Booty from The Story of David and Bathsheba tapestry series, 1526-28.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty. The Silver Basin, in foreground, is attributed to Hans Holbein, ca. 1535

According to the "myth" history of England, the contending factions in the civil wars of the late 1400's identified their respective forces by a different colored rose, red for the House of Lancaster, white for the House of York. It was not quite that straightforward during the bloody course of events, which would not be popularly known as the Wars of the Roses until centuries later.

However, when the "last man standing," Henry Tudor, won the final battle at Bosworth Field in 1485, he saw the need to unite the survivors of both camps under a conciliatory banner. The Tudor Rose made its debut, when the triumphant Tudor, now Henry VII, married a princess of the House of York.

The Tudor Rose appeared in many guises. It was embroidered on sumptuous garments. It was affixed to Royal documents, as can be seen on the 1553 "Letters Patent" granting a heraldic coat of arms to William Paget, henceforth known as 1st Baron Paget de Beaudesert. 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022)

Detail of Letters Patent Granting Arms to William Paget, 1553

Among the suits of armor on view in The Tudors: Art and Majesty, there is a particularly splendid example, owned by George Clifford, Earl of Cumberland. Dating to 1586, it is engraved with the fleur d' lis of France - England continued to claim dominion over France, despite defeat in the Hundred Years War - and the Tudor Rose.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) 

Helmet owned by George Clifford, Third Earl of Cumberland,1586

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) 

Detail of Hans Holbein the Younger's Sir Thomas More, 1527

Perhaps the most impressive of all was the golden Tudor Rose suspended from the chain of office of the Lord Chancellor of England, the second most powerful man in the kingdom. 

Once in power, Henry VII (reigned 1485-1509) revealed himself as a thrifty, capable king. He kept England out of war, repairing its battered economy. Displays of Royal iconography, including the Tudor Rose, were carefully stage-managed to promote the image of responsible, not grandiose, monarchy.

Henry VII did devote significant funding to artistic and cultural programs, especially if such expenditure bolstered his image as a dutiful Christian king. His son and heir, Henry VIII did so too - initially.

As a result of the early Tudor emphasis on ecclesiastical art, the opening display of the Met's exhibition evokes a sense of medieval Christendom rather than English majesty. 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022)

 Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty.

 Shown here are works by Benedetto da Rovezzano, Angels Bearing Candlesticks,  ca. 1524–29, and Candelabrum, ca. 1529–40

There is more than a touch of irony here as the pair of spectacular bronze angels (who wear headbands being a Tudor Rose medallion) and a towering candelabrum were made by Benedetto da Rovezzano (1474–1554), a Florentine sculptor who worked in England from 1519-1543.

Ed Voves, Photo (2022) 

Bronze Angel wearing Tudor Rose by Benedetto da Rovezzano

Benedetto's first English patron was the immensely ambitious Cardinal Wolsey who employed him to create bronze figures for his tomb, much as Michelangelo was contracted to do for Pope Julius II. When Wolsey fell from power, Henry VIII took over the tomb project for himself but it was never completed. 

Ed Voves, Photo (2022) 

Detail of Candelabrum by Benedetto da Rovezzano, ca. 1529-40

Much of Benedetto's English work was later dispersed. The candelabrum was sold by the Puritan regime of Oliver Cromwell during the 1650's. The candle-bearing angels, instead of guarding the remains of Cardinal Wolsey, disappeared into private hands until being recognized in recent decades. They are now in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.  

 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022)

 Gallery view of The Tudors exhibit, showing the Luttrell Table Carpet

 

The most significant - and perhaps, surprising - treasures acquired by the Tudors were works of fabric art. These are brilliantly displayed in the Met's exhibit: tapestries, carpets, glittering examples of cloth of gold and religious vestments. 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Fencing Doublet, ca. 1580

Some of the most spectacular items of personal clothing ever worn in Europe were created for the ruling elite of Tudor England. Very few examples of these remain, however. On view in the Met exhibit, there is a man's tight-fitting doublet, padded to protect against swords and daggers while fencing, and a pair of gloves.

The rare survivals in the other fabric categories reveal the rich world of color, texture and symbolism so prized by the Tudors. One example comes from a set of ten tapestries, The Story of the Redemption of Man. This was likely woven in the southern Netherlands (Belgium). In 1502, the entire set was purchased by Henry VII. If displayed side-by-side the ten tapestries would have extended more than a fifth of a mile. The other nine tapestries have not been seen since 1673. 

The surviving wall hanging of the set,The Creation and Fall of Man, is remarkable on many counts.  Of especial note is the manner in which the Divine Trinity is depicted. God the Father, the Son (Jesus) and the Holy Spirit are shown in nearly identical form as crowned and robed rulers, each bearing a royal scepter. The Trinity appears seven times in this regal mode on the broad field of the tapestry, once for each of the Seven Days of Creation.

 

Ed Voves, Photo (2022)

 Detail of Creation and Fall of Man Tapestry, 1497–1502

Whatever the reason for departing from the traditional presentation of the Holy Trinity, the tremendous artistic skill used to create the images of the kingly Father, Son and Holy Spirit is of the highest caliber. 

Moreover, the emotion imparted to the faces of the Trinity testifies to a profound level of religious belief of both patrons and artists of the tapestry. The heartfelt religious convictions of the 1500's were indeed woven into the warp and woof of this magnificent wall hanging.

Ed Voves, Photo (2022) Henry VII Cope, 1499–1505

The same can said can be said of the Henry VII Cope. Worn by Catholic priests during the celebration of the Mass, this cope was part of a wardrobe of over thirty vestments commissioned for use in Westminster Abby. The total cost of these garments, made in Italy, has been calculated in the currency of the time, at £100,000. 

The staggering price tag can be explained by the materials used. The cope on view in the Met's exhibit was made of velvet cloth of gold with loops of gilded silver and silver-wrapped threads. The bands of embroidered decoration, examples of the celebrated Opus Anglicanum needle work, were added after the garments arrived in England. In the case of this cope, the embroidered decoration we see here was not original to it. Although dating to the same era, it was added at a later date.

Ed Voves, Photo (2022)

Detail of Henry VII Cope, showing Opus Anglicanum needle work

Judging from the attention and funding devoted to religious matters by the early Tudors, England's loyalty to the Roman Catholic faith seemed unshakable when Martin Luther launched the Protestant Reformation in 1517. Yet, during the next two decades, Henry VIII's break with the Papacy over his marriage to Catherine of Aragon, transformed the cultural, as well as the spiritual, landscape of England.                                                                                                                                                                                                                            The "King's Great Matter" pitted Henry VIII against Emperor Charles V, the loyal nephew of Catherine of Aragon, as much as against the Papacy. Thus, the initial break with Rome was primarily a political act. In terms of The Met's exhibit, there are few works of art which evoke this epic event in European and British history, except for portraiture. 

That is a very big exception since it involved Han Holbein the Younger, the German/Swiss painter at the court of Henry VIII. Holbein was indisputably one of the greatest portrait painters in world history. Until the advent of photography, no historical era's "great and powerful" have ever be so brilliantly documented. Moreover, Holbein exerted such a powerful impact on British art that his presence continued to be felt long after he died, suddenly and unexpectedly, in 1543.  

                                                         

Hans Holbein the Younger 

 Henry VIII of England, ca. 1537

                                                                                                               Given the importance of portraiture under the Tudor dynasty and thus, as a component of The Tudors: Art and Majesty, I have elected to do a follow-up review which will focus exclusively on the portraits in the exhibition. Special attention will be paid to the attempt to turn the likeness of Elizabeth I into a near-religious icon.

The Tudors: Art and Majesty does include one work in its awesome array of art which indirectly addresses the horrific effect of the "King's Great Matter" and the persecutions and counter-persecutions which it triggered. 

 

Ed Voves, Photo (1922) Dirck Vellert's Martyrdom of the Seven Maccabee Brothers and Their Mother, ca. 1530-35

This is a stained glass window showing the Martyrdom of the Seven Maccabee Brothers and Their Mother. It was created by Dirck Vellert (ca. 1480/85–ca. 1547) during the crisis years of Henry's "Great Matter," though for which church or chapel is not known. Vellert was a highly regarded artist during his lifetime - Durer held him in great esteem - but much of his work was latter lost or destroyed. Many of his masterpieces were no doubt casualties in the wave of iconoclastic destruction which was part of the "radical" Reformation.

Vellert's Seven Maccabee Brothers shows the two-step process of discussion and debate followed by death and destruction which was taking place in Europe even as he worked on the design for this window.

Ed Voves, Photo (1922)

 Detail of Martyrdom of the Seven Maccabee Brothers and Their Mother

In the foreground, the Hellenistic Greek ruler, Antiochus IV, confers with members of his court on how to crush the rebellious Jews who refuse to endorse Greek customs such as eating pork. In the background, his troops  are executing his orders - literally.  Burning, flaying alive, beheading, the full "play-book" of state-terror tactics, it's all there illustrated in stained-glass.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) 

Hans Holbein the Younger's Sir Thomas More, 1527

On July 6, 1535, around the time that Vellert was completing the Seven Maccabee Brothers window, Sir Thomas More was beheaded on Tower Hill. More, who had only lately worn the golden Tudor Rose of the Lord Chancellor of England around his neck, was executed for refusing to take the oath acknowledging Henry VIII as the supreme leader of the Church of England.

History, as the tired old saying goes, always repeats itself. 

***

Text and photos: Copyright of Ed Voves, all rights reserved                          Original photos: Copyright of Anne Lloyd, all rights reserved

Introductory Image: Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty exhibition at the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Henry VIII by the Workshop of Hans Holbein the Younger, ca 1540. Oil on panel: 93 5/8 × 52 3/4 in. (237.9 × 134 cm) Walker Art Gallery, National Museums, Liverpool 

Ed Voves, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty showing  Michael Sittow's portrait of Mary Tudor, later Queen of France and Duchess of Suffolk, ca. 1514. Oil on panel, 115/16 × 8¼ in. (28.7 × 21 cm) Gemäldegalerie, Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty showing The “Sea-Dog” Table , ca. 1575. Walnut wood, gilded silver, marbled inlay, 33½ × 58 × 33½ in. (85 × 147 × 85 cm) National Trust, Hardwick Hall, The Devonshire Collection and The Division of the Booty from The Story of David and Bathsheba tapestry series, made by an unknown Flemish artist, ca. 1526-28, 10-piece set. Wool, silk and gilded silver metal-wrapped threads: 15 ft. 5/16 in. x 19 ft. 5 7/8 in. ( 458 x 594 cm) Musee national de la Renaissance, chateau d'Ecouen, France.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty. In the foreground is a Basin, attributed to design by Hans Holbein the Younger, ca. 1535-36. Silver, gilded silver with colored enameling: 2 1/16 x 17 1/2 - 17 1/16 in. (5.2 cm x 44.5 -44.9 cm) Focke Museum, Bremen, Germany.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Detail of Letters Patent Granting Arms to William Paget, 1st Baron Paget de Beaudesert, by King Edward VI, March 25, 1553 Ink and bodycolor on vellum, with wax seal, 34¼ × 367/16 in. (87 × 92.5 cm) Marquess of Anglesey, Plas Newydd, Anglesey 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Helmet from the Armor Garniture owned by George Clifford, Third Earl of Cumberland,1586. Made under the direction of Jacob Halder, master armorer at the Royal Workshops at Greenwich. Steel, gold, leather, textile: H. 69 1/2 in. (176.5 cm), W.60 lb. (27.2 kg) The Metropolitan Museum

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Detail  of Han Holbein the Younger's Sir Thomas More, 1527. Oil on panel: 29 ½ x 23 ¾ inches The Frick Collection.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty. Shown are: Angels Bearing Candlesticks, created by Benedetto da Rovezzano, ca. 1524–29. Bronze, each 39¾ × 193/4 × 13 in. (101 × 50 × 33 cm) Victoria and Albert Museum, London (A.1-2015, A.2-2015)  & Candelabrum  by Benedetto da Rovezzano , ca. 1529–40 Bronze, 106¼ × 17¾ × 17¾ in. (270 × 45 × 45 cm) Sint-Baafskathedraal, Ghent.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Gallery view of The Tudors: Art and Majesty, showing the Luttrell Table Carpet, before 1580. Wool, silk, gilded silver and silver metal wrapped threads: 6 ft. 4 in. x 18 ft. 15/16 in. (193 x 651 cm) Glasgow City Council, the Burrell Collection, Glasgow.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Fencing Doublet, ca. 1580. Leather, silk, linen, cotton: H. 30 in. (76.2 cm) W. 24 3/4 in. (60.3 cm)  D. 14 1/4 in. (36.2 cm)  The Metropolitan Museum of Art.

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Detail of Creation and Fall of Man Tapestry from a Ten-Piece Set of the Story of the Redemption of Man, designed by an unknown Flemish artist, ca. 1497–99 Probably Brussels, before 1502. Wool (warp), wool, silk, silver, and gilded-silver metal-wrapped threads (wefts:167¾ × 3291/8 in. (426 × 836 cm) Cathédrale Saint-Just-et-Saint-Pasteur, Narbonne 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Henry VII Cope, 1499–1505. Velvet cloth of gold, made in Italy, brocaded with loops of gilded silver and silver metal wrapped threads. Orphrey and hood: England, ca. 1500. Linen embroidered with silk and gilded-silver metal-wrapped threads: 64 1/8 × 130¾ in. (163 × 332 cm) Trustees of the British Jesuit Province–Jesuits in Britain

Hans Holbein the Younger (German/Swiss, 1497/98–1543) Henry VIII of England, ca. 1537. Oil on panel, 11 × 7 7/8 in. (28 × 20 cm) Museo Nacional Thyssen-Bornemisza, Madrid (191 [1934.39])

Ed Voves, Photo (2022) Martyrdom of the Seven Maccabee Brothers and Their Mother, designed and executed by Dirck Vellert, ca. 1530-35. Stained glass: 27 3/4 x 18 1/2 in. (70. x 47 cm).The Metropolitan Museum of Art 

Anne Lloyd, Photo (2022) Hans Holbein the Younger's Sir Thomas More, 1527. Oil on panel: 29 ½ x 23 ¾ inches The Frick Collection.