OIL PAINTING: Portrait of Charles de Solier, Lord of Morette, 1534-1535
Born about 1480, the French ambassador Charles de Solier remained in London from April 3 to July 26, 1534, during which time Holbein must have painted this portrait- Portrait of Charles de Solier, Lord of Morette. As the name of the man is not written on the painting, it was forgotten over the centuries, and until the 19th century even Holbein was not known. Consequently, when Augustus III of Saxony (elector 1733-1763) acquired the panel in 1746, it was described as a portrait of the ruler of Milan, Ludovico Sforza, Il Moro (duke 1481-1499), painted by
Leonardo da Vinci.