Ontwerp voor een sierkan 1500 - 1600

Here we see a drawing by Hans Holbein the Younger, a design for a ewer, made with pen and brush in brown and grey ink, with watercolour. Immediately striking is the precise symmetry and balanced composition of the jug. Holbein employs a classical vase form, but the devil is in the detail, especially the fusion of the organic with the inanimate. Notice the handles and spouts, each terminating in grotesque masks and lion heads. Holbein cleverly destabilizes the clean lines of the vase through this jarring ornamental flourish. The semiotic system at play uses established cultural codes that would have resonated with Holbein's patrons. The lion, a symbol of strength and sovereignty, merges with grotesque masks, emblems of the irrational and the base. The jug thus represents a delicate balancing act between the refined sensibilities of the Renaissance and the more unruly, instinctual elements of human nature. It stands not as a simple vessel, but as a complex signifier of cultural tensions and philosophical dialogues.