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Art ...
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ArtSleuth
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Two men
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beside a set of shelves…
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… littered with objects.
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A picture by Holbein!
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At first sight, wealth,
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power
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and arrogance personified.
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But something jars!
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This pale and threatening shape
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suspended below them ...
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The first step towards deciphering the picture’s meaning
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is to look at it sideways;
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when we do,
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the rich trappings fade out
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- and the ultimate victor comes into focus!
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Death eclipses everything!
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So what does this carefully constructed scene really mean?
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These two men, are they trampling death underfoot
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- or is it preparing to seize them?
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Episode 6: *The Ambassadors* by Hans Holbein
*Can death be defeated?*
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Part 1: Death - the Invincible
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Trying to beat death?
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The two humans in the picture
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in their heavy clothing …
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…and cluttered setting…
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… with its jumble of motifs : do they look like winners?
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Their world seems artificial, ponderous and static …
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… while death, by comparison, looks sleek and dynamic!
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The only natural, non-fabricated object in the picture,
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the skull has its own special lighting, from the right …
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… and its own vigorous diagonal.
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Apparently wearing ...
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an ear-to-ear grin,
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it even seems to be the picture’s real hero!
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Initially, then, the moral seems obvious - and edifying:
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Death enters,
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and the world and its vanities simply disappear:
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neither wealth,
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power
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nor even knowledge
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can save us!
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But the barely visible figure of Christ in the top left-hand corner
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reminds us that there is a second viewpoint,
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which wipes death itself from the picture.
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Holbein is using our physical movement, as we view his picture from different angles, ...
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to make us realise that we must move spiritually as well, ...
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as we turn away from the things of this world…
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towards God and salvation in the next.
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But that is not the Ambassadors’ only message!
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We must also move into the picture,
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immersing ourselves in its details,
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and particularly the sturdy, H-shaped set of shelves
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on which the two men are leaning.
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They seem to lord it over death
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- but where does their self-assurance come from?
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Part 2: *Death - and Politics*
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1533: Two ambassadors …
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Both young:
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their ages are marked discreetly on a dagger,
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29…
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and a book,
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25.
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Both French:
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they wear the insignia of the Order of St. Michael, instituted by the King of France
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And both sharing the same vision of diplomacy –
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a vision symbolised on the shelves.
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On the upper shelf, perfection - the divine order.
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On the lower shelf, confusion - the worldly order,
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insecure and beset by evil omens:
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The flute case with one flute missing
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The broken lute-string
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The arithmetical treatise open at “division”
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And the topsy-turvy globe.
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All of this reflects a major problem:
France...
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...is Europe’s leading power...
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...but the balance is now tipping in favour of...
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...its rivals, and its very survival is at risk.
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Portugal and Castille are building global empires.
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With the Pope’s blessing, they are carving up the world and sharing it:
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the new lands discovered east of this boundary go to Portugal,
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those west of it to Spain.
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To make things worse, Castille and Aragon are ruled by France’s hereditary enemy,
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the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation.
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And the English still hold Calais.
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In effect, France is surrounded all on all sides.
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The Ambassadors’ job is to save it, and they hold four strong diplomatic cards to help them do that:
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The first, symbolised by this hymn - the work of Luther, founder of Protestantism…
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… is the division of Christendom between Catholics and Protestants!
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By supporting the Protestant princes and towns, they can weaken the Empire,
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which is already fragmented into thousands of states.
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The second is their contacts with the Muslim world,
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symbolised by this carpet.
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When Holbein paints his picture, the Ottomans have reached the gates of Vienna
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and are threatening Christendom.
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But this doesn’t stop the ambassadors from
negotiating a treaty with them,
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and so forcing the Empire to move its forces east.
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The third is the love-life of the King of England,
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symbolised by this tiled floor, which replicates that in London’s Westminster Abbey.
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France has backed the King’s decision to repudiate his first wife,
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who has links with the Empire, and marry Anne Boleyn.
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This is its way of forestalling a possible alliance between England and the Empire.
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In short, *the Ambassadors* embody a new religion:
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a religion which allows a country to side with the enemies of Papacy,
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Christendom
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and Empire
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whenever its own vital interests are at stake:
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politics and raison d’état are its guiding principles.
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The idea comes from Machiavelli’s *The Prince*,
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which pre-dates *The Ambassadors* by one year
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- and shows that politics follows rules of its own.
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“*To maintain the state, the prince is often obliged to act in a manner contrary to humanity,* ...
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*...charity and religion.*
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*He should, whenever possible, follow the path of virtue, ...*
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*...but should also be able, in case of necessity, to follow that of vice.*”
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Essentially, *The Ambassadors* celebrates three kinds of movement:
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-spiritual, as the converted believer...
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...turns from the world and its vanities to God;
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-diplomatic, as national envoys conjure peace from conflict;
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-artistic,
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as Holbein gives us an illusion of reality
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which comes and goes with our shifting viewpoint.
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Life and death are intertwined:
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we must face that fact
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or perish!
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*The Ambassadors* holds more secrets...
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Watch the film in its original long version
(available on DVD and VOD)
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Next episode: Bellini
*Beyond movement: the vitality of Nature*
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For more information, visit www.canal-educatif.fr
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Written and directed by:
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Produced by:
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Funding: sponsors & public support
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Voiceover:
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Editing & motion graphics:
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Extra editing / Sound recording
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Musical selection:
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Music
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Special thanks:
English subtitles: Vincent Nash
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A CED film