Anamorphosis before 1583. "The Ambassadors" (c. 1533) by Hans Holbein the Younger is well known for the prominent oblique anamorphic transformation in the painting. In this artwork, a distorted shape lies diagonally across the bottom of the frame. Viewing this from an acute angle transforms it into the plastic image of a human skull. The painting is regarded as a "vanitas" - a meditation on the transience of life - with the skull a symbolic "memento mori". The altered perspective required to see the image reflects the contemporary practice of painting skulls on the reverse of otherwise tranquil paintings. Four centuries
Hans Holbein the Younger in which biblical villains were dressed as monks. His reformist painting "The Old and the New Law" identified the Old Testament with the "Old Religion". Scholars have detected subtler religious references in his portraits. In "The Ambassadors", for example, details such as the Lutheran hymn book and the crucifix behind the curtain allude to the context of the French mission. Holbein painted few religious images in the later part of his career. He focused on secular designs for decorative objects, and on portraits stripped of inessentials. For Holbein, "everything began with a drawing". A gifted draughtsman, he was heir to