Has A Portrait Of Shakespeare's 'Lover' Been Found After 400 Years?

portrait of Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of SouthamptonA miniature portrait of Henry Wriothesley, 3rd Earl of Southampton – described as Shakespeare’s “patron and possible lover” – may have been discovered after 400 years in a private collection. The owners of the miniature contacted Dr Elizabeth Goldring, an honorary reader at the University of Warwick, after reading her book Nicholas Hilliard: Life of an Artist. They thought the picture was in the artist’s style and wanted to identify the sitter. So, for the past few months, Dr Goldring (along with portrait miniatures expert Emma Rutherford of The Limner Company and literary scholar and Shakespeare specialist Professor Sir Jonathan Bate) has worked to authenticate the tiny picture. It is now believed to have been painted by Queen Elizabeth I’s favourite portraitist, Nicholas Hilliard, and to feature Henry Wriothesley. It appears to have been made in roughly the 1590s.Who was Henry Wriothesley, and how did he know Shakespeare? The then-3rd Earl of Southampton was “a noted patron of the arts,” Goldring said – and Shakespeare was one of his beneficiaries.The poems Venus and Adonis and The Rape of Lucrece were dedicated to Wriothesley, and some speculate he was the androgynous “fair youth” to whom a lot of Shakespeare’s works are addressed. “The Earl’s pearl earring, bracelets, beautifully embroidered clothing and long hair held close to his heart may present an initial impression of a woman, but this is a faithful representation of Wriothesley’s appearance,” Dr Goldring said.“A noted patron of the arts, Wriothesley was celebrated by his contemporaries for his androgynous beauty and his love of poetry and drama. He was known, too, for his vanity and for the great pride he took in his appearance, especially his long hair.”Wriothesley is also the bard’s rumoured lover – and the researchers think a detail on the miniature might reveal more about their relationship. Front (left) and back (right) of portraitWhat might the discovery show about Wriothesley’s relationship to Shakespeare?In an interview with The Times, Goldring suggested that the painting “must have been for a very, very close friend or lover.”“Miniatures were inherently private artworks that were frequently exchanged as love tokens,” Dr Goldring added in a press release.This picture is a tiny 2.25 inches tall.“This miniature is pasted onto a playing card, which is customary for the time. The reverse of this playing card was originally a red heart, but most unusually, the heart has been deliberately obliterated and painted over with a black arrow,” she continued.“It could, arguably, be a spade – but I think it more strongly resembles a spear, the symbol that appears in Shakespeare’s coat of arms.” The detail provides a fascinating possible insight into the pair’s “enigmatic” dynamic.Related...People Are Just Realising This Popular Rom-Com Was Actually Inspired By A Shakespeare Play10 Big-Screen Faves You Probably Didn't Realise Were Based On William Shakespeare Plays12 Surprising Stars Of Shakespeare

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