File:Holbein, Hans - Georg Gisze, a German merchant in London.jpg

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Hans Holbein the Younger: The Merchant Georg Gisze

Artist



Alternative names	Hans Holbein der Jüngere, Hans Holbein
Description	-German painter and drawer
Date of birth/death	1497 or 1498 date QS:P,+1497-00-00T00:00:00Z/8,P1319,+1497-00-00T00:00:00Z/9,P1326,+1498-00-00T00:00:00Z/9	between 7 October 1543 and 29 November 1543 date QS:P,+1543-00-00T00:00:00Z/9,P1319,+1543-10-07T00:00:00Z/11,P1326,+1543-11-29T00:00:00Z/11
Location of birth/death	Augsburg	London
Work location	Basel (1515-1526), Lucerne (1515-1526), Venice (1515), Bologna (1515), Florence (1515), Rome (1515), Venice (1517-1518), Bologna (1517-1518), Florence (1517-1518), Rome (1517-1518), London (1526-1528), Basel (1528-1532), London (1532-1543)
Authority file	: Q48319 VIAF: 4945401 ISNI: 0000000120987816 ULAN: 500005259 LCCN: n81117179 NLA: 36275979 WorldCat

Title

German:

Der Kaufmann Georg Gisze

The Merchant Georg Gisze

Object type

painting

Genre

portrait

Depicted people

Georg Giese

Date

1532

Medium

oil on oak wood

Dimensions

length: 86.2 cm (33.9 in); height: 97.5 cm (38.3 in)

Collection

Gemäldegalerie

	Native name	Gemäldegalerie der Staatlichen Museen zu Berlin
	Parent institution	Staatliche Museen zu Berlin
	Location	Bezirk Mitte von Berlin , Germany
	Coordinates	52° 30′ 31″ N, 13° 21′ 53″ E
	Established	1830
	Website	smb.museum
	Authority file	: Q165631 VIAF: 139597962 ISNI: 0000000120974783 LCCN: n94003740 OSM: 3626233 GND: 806975-X WorldCat

Current location

room 1

Accession number

586 (Gemäldegalerie)

Place of creation

London

Notes

English:

Holbein painted this large portrait at the beginning of his second period in England in search of work, and it may be intended as a virtuoso showpiece for his gifts in portraiture and the depiction of objects and textures. It is the most sumptuous of his series of portraits of mainly German merchants of the Steelyard, a complex of offices, warehouses, and residences on the north bank of the Thames in London. Familiar with Holbein's wider reputation, the merchants were quick to take advantage of his presence in London. The Danzig merchant Georg Gisze (or Giese) is shown among the paraphernalia of his trade: money, pen, seal, inkpots, balance, boxes, scissors, keys. On a table covered with a Turkey rug stands a vase of carnations, perhaps symbolising his betrothal (Gisze married Christine Krüger in Danzig in 1535).

On the surface, the picture appears super-realistic; but on closer inspection it contains a series of deliberate optical paradoxes. The walls, for example, are not at a right angle, and the table, as shown in the bottom right of the painting, where objects overhang its edge, is not rectangular. Certain objects on the table are not painted flat to the surface, and the vase and the money tin are precariously positioned. The overlapping of the book by the note, or cartellino, fixed to the wall by sealing wax, is an optical illusion given the bulk of the book. The balance hangs unstably from the shelf; and next to it is inscribed Gisze's motto: "Nulla sine merore voluptas" (no pleasure without regret), implying a symbolic connection with the scales. According to art historian Stephanie Buck, "The apparently splendid world of the rich merchant Gisze is thus by no means as sound and stable as it appears at first" (Buck, pp. 88–95).

References

Source/Photographer

Unknown source

Other versions

See Category:Der Kaufmann Georg Gisze (Holbein der Jüngere)

Licensing

This is a faithful photographic reproduction of a two-dimensional, public domain work of art. The work of art itself is in the public domain for the following reason:

The author died in 1543, so this work is in the public domain in its country of origin and other countries and areas where the copyright term is the author's life plus 100 years or fewer.

This work is in the public domain in the United States because it was published (or registered with the U.S. Copyright Office) before January 1, 1929.

This file has been identified as being free of known restrictions under copyright law, including all related and neighboring rights.

The official position taken by the Wikimedia Foundation is that "faithful reproductions of two-dimensional public domain works of art are public domain".
This photographic reproduction is therefore also considered to be in the public domain in the United States. In other jurisdictions, re-use of this content may be restricted; see Reuse of PD-Art photographs for details.

File history

Click on a date/time to view the file as it appeared at that time.

	Date/Time	Dimensions	User	Comment
current	13:31, 12 February 2023	4,096 × 4,674 (3.28 MB)	Ctac	Size and quality
	06:59, 27 September 2011	865 × 976 (349 KB)	1970gemini	Quality-Update
	10:35, 12 February 2011	865 × 976 (198 KB)	Dcoetzee	Reverted to version as of 13:11, 25 February 2005 - higher resolution
	03:28, 26 January 2010	532 × 600 (186 KB)	Thomas Gun	shade
	13:11, 25 February 2005	865 × 976 (198 KB)	Jdforrester	''Georg Gisze, a German merchant in London'' by Hans Holbein. Painted in 1532, Oil on wood, 96.3 x 85.7 cm. Currently held in the Gemaldegalerie, Staatliche Museen, Berlin. {{PD}}