The Dismissal of Cardinal Wolsey 1874

Laslett John Pott painted ‘The Dismissal of Cardinal Wolsey’ in the 19th century. Dominating the foreground, we see a sundial. But this is more than just a measure of time; it's a "memento mori," a reminder of life's fleeting nature, and in this context, of Wolsey's fall from grace. Wolsey, a man once second only to the King, is shown here in quiet consultation, yet his clerical robes hint at his former authority. Consider how the sundial reappears across the centuries, like the skull in Dutch vanitas paintings, a symbol of transience, reminding us of the inevitable decay that awaits all mortals. Its shadow, much like fortune, shifts and changes. In Pott’s painting, the gesture of the figures carry an emotional charge, a moment frozen in time that speaks to our own subconscious fears of decline and obsolescence. The sundial, like history itself, marks time in a non-linear progression, its cyclical presence echoing through art and culture, ever-present, ever-changing.