Portrait of Sir Thomas More
The Frick Collection, New York City
Hans Holbein the Younger painted Sir Thomas More in 1527, during the first of his two periods of work in England[1]. More, then Speaker of the House of Commons and already celebrated across Europe as the author of Utopia, was the first patron Holbein found after arriving in London in 1526 carrying a letter of introduction from Erasmus[1]. More is said to have written back to Erasmus that his new painter was a wonderful artist[1]. Holbein shows him posed against a green curtain held by a thick red cord, dressed in a black velvet cloak with a sable collar over a doublet of red, a heavy gold chain of linked Lancastrian S-S badges draped across his shoulders and finished with a clasp in the form of a double portcullis and Tudor rose[1]. It is said that More wore the chain constantly until he resigned as Lord Chancellor in 1532[1]. He was executed for treason in 1535 after refusing to support Henry VIII's break from Rome[1]. This portrait grew out of a much larger composition, now lost, showing the whole More family gathered at their house in Chelsea, a picture painted on canvas that was destroyed by fire in the eighteenth century, long after Holbein's own preparatory drawing for it had already been sent to Erasmus as a gift[2].
Where it is held
Held at The Frick Collection, New York City, United States.
Developed from studies made for a lost group portrait of the More family at Chelsea, destroyed by fire in the eighteenth century; a pricked preparatory drawing for this individual likeness, on the same scale as the finished panel, survives at Windsor[2]. Now held at the Frick Collection, New York.
Erasmus, More and Holbein's arrival in England
Holbein left his workshop in Basel in the autumn of 1526, travelled down the Rhine and on to England, carrying a letter of introduction from Erasmus[1]. He joined the household of Thomas More at Chelsea. More was then Speaker of the House of Commons, a scholar whose friendship with Erasmus dated back to his student days, and the author of Utopia, written as a companion piece to Erasmus's In Praise of Folly, which had itself been finished in More's home and dedicated to him[1]. More's standing as a humanist was matched by his career as an administrator: in 1529, two years after this portrait was painted, he was appointed Lord Chancellor of England, succeeding Cardinal Wolsey[1]. As far as is known, More was Holbein's first patron in England, and the two men's household connections gave the newly arrived painter his footing at a court he had not yet been commissioned to serve directly[1].
Reading the portrait
More is shown against a green curtain, held in place by a thick red cord that frames his stern, watchful expression[1]. He wears a black velvet cloak lined and collared in sable over a doublet of red, and in his right hand he holds a letter[1]. Around his shoulders hangs a heavy gold chain made of linked S-S badges, the insignia of supporters of the House of Lancaster that Henry VII had revived, finished with a clasp in the shape of a double portcullis from which a Tudor rose hangs[1]. There are no books, no study, no scholarly props of the kind Holbein gave other humanist sitters. The face alone carries the picture: a fierce, piercing stare that Holbein renders without softening, the look of a man whose strong will was already making him enemies at court[1].
The chain, and a story about Anne Boleyn
More is said to have worn the S-S chain shown in the portrait constantly, right up until he resigned the office of Lord Chancellor in 1532[1]. A separate story attached to the picture itself, rather than to the chain, holds that while the portrait was still in Henry VIII's own collection, Anne Boleyn, the king's second wife, once threw it out of a palace window in a rage[1]. It survives as an anecdote rather than a documented event, but it points to how closely this image of More stayed bound up with the court politics that eventually destroyed him: a portrait of the king's Chancellor, kept by the king, disliked by the king's own wife.
Common questions
Who is the sitter in Holbein's Portrait of Sir Thomas More?
Thomas More, the English scholar, lawyer and author of Utopia, who at the time of the portrait was Speaker of the House of Commons. He became Lord Chancellor in 1529 and was executed for treason in 1535 after refusing to support Henry VIII's break with Rome[1].
Why does More wear that gold chain?
It is a chain of S-S badges, the insignia of supporters of the House of Lancaster revived by Henry VII, finished with a clasp of a double portcullis and Tudor rose. It marked his standing at court, and he is said to have worn it constantly until he resigned as Lord Chancellor in 1532[1].
Is there a bigger version of this portrait showing More's whole family?
Yes, though it no longer survives. Holbein made a large group portrait of the More family at their Chelsea home, based on a detailed compositional drawing now in Basel. The painted version was destroyed by fire in the eighteenth century, and is known today only from later copies[2].
Is the story about Anne Boleyn and this portrait true?
It is recorded as a legend rather than a documented event: that while the picture was in Henry VIII's collection, Anne Boleyn once threw it out of a palace window in anger. There is no way to confirm it, but it has long been attached to the painting's history[1].
Sources
Editorial draws on the following references, verified against the museum and public-domain image record for this work.
- [1] book Snyder, James, 1928-1990, Northern Renaissance art : painting, sculpture, the graphic arts from 1350 to 1575 Used for: this artwork.
- [2] book Foister, Susan, 1954-, Holbein in England Used for: this artwork.
- [3] book Kenneth Clark, Civilisation: a personal view Used for: this artwork.
Editorial overseen by Solis Prints. Sources verified 2026-09-03. Click a source for details, or hover over [N] in the page above to preview.
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