The fame of Hertenstein’s painted house had spread to Basle, and Holbein was soon busy over similar undertakings in the town of his adoption, of which the most celebrated was _The House of the Dance_. He also produced many designs for stained-glass windows, as well as a number of sketches for costumes and patterns for goldsmiths and metal-workers. His most important commission at this time, however, was the decoration of the interior of the new Town Hall with wall-paintings, showing that, although only twenty-four, he was already considered to be the chief artist in Basle. He began this work in June, 1521, and by November, 1522, had covered three of the walls with subjects taken from ancient history. These were probably selected for him, and were intended as examples of that exercise of stern justice which should characterize the actions and decisions of all rulers. These great decorative paintings have long since perished through damp and neglect, and only a few fragments remain in the Basle Museum. When he had finished three of the walls, he was of opinion that he had earned the full amount voted by the Town Council for the completion of the whole chamber. The Council saw the justice of this, but, cautious of their expenditure of the public funds, like many Councils of the present day, they resolved to “let the back wall alone until further notice.”
In spite of these large decorative undertakings, Holbein found time to paint a number of sacred pictures, among the earlier ones being a _Passion_ series, coarsely and hastily painted on canvas; a _Last Supper_, reminding one of more famous examples by Leonardo and Luini; and others which are described later on (_see p. 29_). His two greatest sacred pictures, which are worthy to stand by the side of the finest canvases of the Italians, are the _Madonna and Saints_, at Solothurn, painted in 1522, and the famous _Meyer Madonna_, at Darmstadt, (_see illustration, and p. 44_). The latter was executed about 1526 for the former burgomaster, Jacob Meyer.
Among other works of this period of the artist’s career are two small portraits (Basle Museum), representing a certain Dorothea Offenburg, a lady of no great repute in her day, as _Venus with Cupid_, and again as _Lais Corinthiaca_. These are two of the pictures to which certain critics point as showing so strongly the influence of the Milanese school as to suggest a personal visit to Italy.