History news

Bearing only the enigmatic title Portrait of a Woman, this painting’s subject long remained a mystery – but has now been revealed as Mary Boleyn,

Anne’s sister.

A team of experts analysed the wood on which the image was painted, matching it to that used for a portrait of Lady Herbert, wife of Mary’s great-grandson, which was part of a set that decorated Windsor

Castle 300 years ago.

Archival research, meanwhile, revealed inscriptions identifying both portraits. Although they were painted at the same time (probably in the 1630s, when Mary was long dead), it’s thought that Mary’s portrait (now part of the Royal Collection) was separated from the rest due to her being painted in 16th-century, rather than 17th-century, dress.