The Dormition of the Virgin

Hans Holbein the Elder painted this Dormition of the Virgin around 1490, depicting the death of the Virgin Mary surrounded by the twelve apostles. The Dormition was a major feast in the Christian calendar and one of the most frequently painted subjects in German altarpieces. Holbein's treatment brings naturalistic observation to the traditional scene. This work belongs to the High Renaissance, when the innovations of the preceding century were synthesized into works of monumental clarity and ideal beauty. The period's defining aesthetic — balanced composition, idealized figures, unified atmospheric space — was developed above all in Florence and Rome before spreading across Italy and Europe.

Oil on panel with Holbein's characteristic naturalism in the rendering of individual faces and expressions. The multi-figure deathbed scene demonstrates his ability to create distinct characterizations.