The Ambassadors: An Anamorphic Painting by Hans Holbein

We sometimes think of optical illusions as more modern additions to the world of art. But, this simply isn’t true. Optical illusions have been around forever! The Ambassadors is an oil on oak painting by Hans Holbein. This painting is a double portrait and it includes several seemingly random objects in the background.

hans holbein 3D painting

But, there’s also something else in the painting. Take a look at the bottom. You can see something undecipherable stretching up from the bottom left toward the gentleman on the right.

Can you tell what it is? Unless you’re REALLY good, the only way to see what this object actually is is by looking at the painting from the right side…

hans holbein anamorphic skull

And, there it is! Hans Holbein painted a hidden skull into his painting!

You can see this in action in the nifty little video below…

If you liked this Hans Holbein painting, don’t forget to rate it with the stars below! And, before you leave, check out this awesome hidden face painting!

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