The Privacy of a Court Painter: Michel Sittow and his Journeys to the Courts of Isabella of Castile, Christian II of Denmark, and Margaret of Austria

Abstract

The painter Michel Sittow worked for at least three courts: Castile,Denmark, and the Habsburg’s Low Countries. His presence and, tosome extent, his status and activities are documented in scatteredindications in financial sources and inventories. Examining thoseprimary sources, this article pursues two lines of inquiry. Firstly, wetrace Sittow’s trajectory and the connection of his artworks to thesethree periods of his life. Secondly, we deploy the painter’s case toponder material and immaterial courtly boundaries that would haveconstituted different degrees and forms of privacy at court. Finally,this dual examination shows that he may indeed have posed a threatto the privacy of some of his royal employers