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Infrared imaging has uncovered new information about a portrait of Anne Boleyn, revealing that the artist behind the work diverged from an originally approved design commonly used for Tudor queen portraits. This discovery was made through research conducted at Hever Castle, the former childhood residence of Boleyn. Curators explained that the painter modified the preliminary sketch for the Hever Rose portrait, moving away from the typical “B” motif that had been initially followed.
Notably, the final version of the painting included the depiction of Anne Boleyn’s hands, a detail absent in the approved template. According to the researchers, this alteration carries significance. Dr. Owen Emmerson, assistant curator at Hever Castle, described the inclusion of the queen’s hands as a deliberate “visual rebuttal to hostile rumours” that painted Boleyn as a witch possessing extra fingers. She emphasized, “The decision to show Anne’s hands should be understood as intentional.”
The Hever Rose portrait was thoroughly examined by specialists at the Hamilton Kerr Institute, affiliated with the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. Scientific analysis using dendrochronology dated the wooden panel of the painting to the year 1583, during the reign of Anne Boleyn’s daughter, Elizabeth I. This places the artwork as the earliest panel portrait of Boleyn to have been precisely dated. Dr. Emmerson noted that during this period, Anne’s image was undergoing a deliberate revision amid times of “intense political and religious anxiety.”
Kate McCaffrey, historian and deputy curator at Hever Castle, remarked that the approved pattern followed by the original artist might have been based on a prior likeness created closer to Anne Boleyn’s lifetime, potentially offering a more authentic representation of her appearance. She further suggested that the newly dated Hever Rose portrait provides a “more human impression that preserves an earlier idea of Anne’s image” compared to later portrayals. This portrait will be featured in an upcoming exhibition at Hever Castle starting from 11 February, where it will be shown alongside other images of Anne Boleyn
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