Missing Henry VIII portrait found after random X post
A 1590s portrait of King Henry VIII has been identified as missing by art historian Adam Busiakiewicz. It is now at Warwickshire's Museum Collections Centre for further research and potential public display.
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A portrait of King Henry VIII, dating back to the 1590s, has been identified as a missing artwork after an art historian, Adam Busiakiewicz, spotted it in a photo shared on X (formerly Twitter) by the Warwickshire Lieutenancy. The portrait, which was hanging in the Shire Hall, Warwick, was created for tapestry maker Ralph Sheldon and is part of a collection of 22 portraits, with only a few known to exist. Busiakiewicz, who works for Sotheby's, confirmed the identification after inspecting the piece in person. Following the discovery, Warwickshire County Council moved the artwork to its Museum Collections Centre for further research. Busiakiewicz described the portrait as a "striking" representation of one of England's most famous kings and expressed hope that it would be displayed for public admiration. The history of the portrait's journey remains unclear, but it is known that Sheldon's portraits were previously located at Weston House in Long Compton, Warwickshire, before being sold at auction. While the exact value of this particular piece is unknown, similar works have sold for around £200,000. Local historian Aaron Manning, who assisted Busiakiewicz, emphasized the significance of the portrait as an important addition to Warwick's rich history.
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- Art historians and experts emphasize the skill required to identify such artworks, noting that the average person might overlook important details.
- Discussion about the painting's provenance, including its connection to Ralph Sheldon and the larger collection of portraits from the 1590s.
- Questions arise regarding the terminology used to describe the painting's status, with some suggesting "presumed lost to history" is more accurate than "missing."
- Interest in the Warwickshire Lieutenancy and its role in the context of the painting's rediscovery.
- Comments reflect on the serendipitous nature of the painting's recovery, highlighting the detective work involved in tracing its history.
16 commentshttps://x.com/Warkslieutenant/status/1808884139585610231/pho...
(it's the picture with the curved frame on the left)
According to https://adamfineart.wordpress.com/2024/07/04/ralph-sheldons-...
The 1781 sale at Christie’s of the Weston portraits show that the group included portraits of Henry IV, Henry V, Edward IV, Richard III, Henry VII, Queen Elizabeth, Charles V, Prince Arthur, Henry VIII, Francis King of France, Edward VI, Queen Mother of France, Henry of Bourbon, King of France, Cardinal Wolsey, L. Cromwell Earl of Essex, Sir Thomas Moore, Duke of Alva, Comte Eglemont, Duke of Guise, Duke of Parma and the Earl of Essex.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Little_(film)#Lost_pain...
Surely this wasn't the first public photo of this painting posted to internet, was it?
This is pretty amazing that such an offhanded catch led to a recovery of something assumed lost to history though.
''' After inspecting it personally to test his theory, he confirmed the artwork was created *for* tapestry maker Ralph Sheldon and dated back to the 1590s.
It was one of a collection of 22 portraits made *for* Sheldon, but the whereabouts of only a handful were known.
'''
I'm confused whether Sheldon is the painter or the commissioner.
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