Reproductie van een prent van een geschilderd portret van Hubert Morett naar Hans Holbein II before 1875

This is a reproduction of a print of a painted portrait of Hubert Morett after Hans Holbein the Younger. It's held at the Rijksmuseum. Prints like this one were critical for circulating images of power and prestige in the early modern period. Holbein's original portrait would have been commissioned by Morett to project a specific image of himself to the elite circles of the 16th century. The clothing, the pose, and even the gaze were all carefully constructed to convey status, wealth, and authority. The circulation of printed reproductions allowed a wider audience to access and consume these images, reinforcing social hierarchies and the power of the portrayed. To fully understand this image, we need to look at the social conditions that made the original portrait possible, as well as the institutions that supported its reproduction and circulation. Art history is as much about understanding the world in which art is made and consumed as it is about the artwork itself. Resources such as letters, inventories, and institutional records can reveal the complex social lives of images.