Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Young Henry VIII Revealed


A long lost "royal treasure" with one of the earliest paintings of Henry VIII has been discovered at the National Library of Wales.

From a piece on BBC News...

The manuscript was donated to the Aberystwyth library in 1921, but officials say they have only just realised its true significance.

One of its 34 pictures is believed to show 11-year-old Henry weeping at the empty bed of his mother, Elizabeth.

The library said the manuscript could be worth more than £1m.

Bound in wooden boards and covered with crimson velvet, the manuscript contains a late 15th Century passional - a book recounting the sufferings of saints and martyrs - depicting Jesus Christ's last days on earth through a series of images and text, written in medieval French.

It also has the poem Le Miroir de la Mort (The Mirror of Death) by Georges Chastellain.

It is believed the manuscript was presented to Henry VII, Henry's father, after the death of his wife Elizabeth of York.



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