Christina of Denmark, Duchess of Milan

Holbein's Christina of Denmark, Duchess of Milan (1538) at the National Gallery, London, was painted as part of Henry VIII's search for a fourth wife after the death of Jane Seymour. Holbein traveled to Brussels specifically to make this portrait study of the sixteen-year-old duchess, reportedly spending only three hours with the sitter before returning to London with his drawings. The resulting full-length portrait — one of Holbein's most elegant and formally accomplished — presents Christina with a luminous silvery palette against a plain blue ground, the widow's black dress creating a formal simplicity that heightens the directness of the sitter's gaze. Christina reportedly remarked that if she had two heads, one would be at the King of England's disposal.

The full-length format against a plain background creates a striking silhouette of the young duchess in mourning black, with Holbein capturing her composed beauty and quiet self-possession with remarkable economy.