Epitaph der Schwestern Vetter

Hans Holbein the Elder painted this memorial epitaph for the Vetter sisters around 1499 in Augsburg. Epitaph paintings, combining portraits of the deceased with religious scenes, were a distinctively German art form that served as both commemorative monuments and devotional aids. Holbein's workshop in Augsburg produced numerous such works for the city's patrician families. This work belongs to the High Renaissance, when the innovations of the preceding century were synthesized into works of monumental clarity and ideal beauty.

Oil on panel combining donor portraits with a devotional scene in the epitaph format. Holbein's naturalistic portraiture and careful rendering of the sisters' features demonstrate his skill as both portraitist and devotional painter.