Figure 1.--This unattributed portrait looks to show a boy in 16th century clothing. We are not sure who the boy is or who the artist was. Click on the image for an elargement of the detail.

Boys' Identity

A HBC reader has restored a portrait that could well be Edward VI. The artist, however, is unknown and we have no confirmation that this in fact Edward. The boy does seem to be dressed in 16th century clothing. We note that there is considerable similarity between the collar Edward wears in figure 2 on the main Edward VI page, suggesting that the clothing is indeed 16th centuries styles. One of the striking aspects of this portrait is the boy's short hair. It would certainly pass as a moder hair cut. We have noted royal princes in the 17th century without hats. We wonder how common it was to paint a royal prince in this manner in the 16th century. If this boy is not Edward, give the quality of the portrait, he must have been from a wealthy aristocrratic family.

Cleaning Discovery

The art dealer handling this portrait had this painting restored. It had been over painted in such a way to make it look like Edward VI which is currently in the Queens collection London England. However on cleaning it was discovered that in the early 90's someone had added a hat, ring and altered the style of the the tunic and this picture immerged. As you can see it is an amazing piece. The dealer is now researching it to determine whom the sitter may be and the artist. We would be very interested in any insights readers might have.

Dating

HBC has no way to actually date the portrait. It does appear to us that the fashions and hir styles shown represent the second half of the 16th century. The collar shown here, for example, does seem similar to the one actually worn by Edeard VI about 1550. We also note that the short hair cut matches that worn by Edward about 1550. A HBC reader believes that the style of the collar is closer to the late 16th century, some decades after Edward V1's reign. This should be possible to check in art reference books which e hope to do eventually.

Country

As the portrait is mot identified, w hav no way of being sure that it is English. The red hair, however, suggests to HBC that it might be English. Of course Irish is a possibility, but the boy does not look Irish to us. In addition, Ireland was in the 16th century a very rough, region without any established central government. We are unfamilar with art of this quality vcoming from 16th century Ireland.

Cloth

We note the boy here is holding some sort of cloth. We have not noticed this in other 16th century portraits. It seems a strange way of posing a boy in a formal portrait. We are unsure as to the significance of the cloth.

Created: April 15, 2002
Last updated: April 16, 2002