William Roper (1493/94–1578)

Holbein's portrait of William Roper (1535–36) depicts Thomas More's son-in-law and biographer, the man who would write the first biography of More after his execution. William Roper, like his wife Margaret, had maintained loyalty to the executed chancellor and would eventually write his memoir of More — one of the most important early biographical texts in English literature. Holbein painted the couple as pendant portraits in the year after More's execution, creating a memorial of loyalty to the martyred humanist at a time when such loyalty was politically dangerous. The portrait's quiet dignity conveys a man of sincere conviction navigating a court that had destroyed the man he most admired.

The miniature on vellum laid on card shows Holbein's masterful miniature technique, with the face built up through delicate stippling and subtle tonal modeling. The drawing is precise and confident, capturing the sitter's features with the unflinching accuracy that characterizes all Holbein's portraits.