Lais of Corinth
Lais of Corinth (fl. 425 BCE) was a famous hetaira or courtesan of ancient Greece who was probably born in Corinth. A younger hetaira with the same name was Lais of Hyccara. Since ancient authors (in their usually indirect accounts) often confuse them or do not indicate which they refer to, the two are inextricably linked. Lais lived during the Peloponnesian War and was said to be the most beautiful woman of the time. Among her clients were the philosopher Aristippus (two of his alleged writings were about Lais) and the Olympic champion Eubotas of Cyrene.
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Charles Peter Mason (1870). "Lais". In Smith, William. Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology 2. p. 712.
Lais of Corinth (Holbein)
Lais of Corinth by Hans Holbein the Younger portrays the famous Lais of Corinth, a courtesan of ancient Greece who charged a high price for her favours. It has been suggested that Holbein is also referring to the Lais who was the lover of Apelles, the great painter of antiquity (Holbein was called "Apelles" in humanist circles). The model, the same used for Holbein's Darmstadt Madonna and for his Venus and Amor (right), has been identified as Magdalena Offenburg, who may have been Holbein's mistress.
Holbein's Lais was painted a year or two after Venus and Amor and, in effect, acts as its companion piece, though Holbein does not appear to have originally planned the second painting. According to some commentators, the portrayal of the sitter as a hetaera or courtesan may contain a coded message by Holbein about his relationship with her.
Art historian Peter Claussen, however, dismisses this interpretation as "pure nonsense". Both paintings employ the same colours and depict the same costume and drapery. Holbein adopts the style of Leonardo and the Lombard muralists, whose work he may have studied during a visit to Italy. He uses Leonardo's sfumato (smoky) technique to blend the skin tones, as well as the device of the parapet to set the subject back from the viewer.
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