25+ The Ambassadors Holbein High Resolution Gif. The skull emblem in dinteville's hat shows his interest in the genre of memento mori. Holbein painted the ambassadors during a particularly tense period marked by rivalries between the kings of england and france, the roman emperor, and the pope.
Holbein's decision to have the skull cover the center of the floor pattern seems intentional.
The ambassadors were jean de dinteville, french ambassador in england, and georges de selve, bishop of lavaur. He was a german artist and printmaker who worked in a northern renaissance style and is known as one of the greatest portraitists of the 16th century. Holbein painted the ambassadors during a particularly tense period marked by rivalries between the kings of england and france, the roman emperor, and the pope. The appearance of both a skull and a crucifix in the ambassadors recalls images of st.