The project will attempt to create a realistic and historically accurate gown for Anne Boleyn. The gown will be loosely based on the portrait of Anne Boleyn from the National Portrait Gallery in London. As far as I can tell, no one has tried to re-create this dress, probably because only the neckline of the gown is visible. In recreating the hidden parts of the gown I will have to rely upon other portraits of the time for style and cut.

Shift

Corset

Petticoats

Gown

Sleeves

Forepart

French Hood

'B' Necklace

Girdle

Research: A few basic dates.

I've been spending my time at uni reading up on Anne rather than reading up for classes, so I thought I'd write a brief run down....to follow soon...

Sources:

Links:

Tudor Dress: a Portfolio of Images

Some Preliminary Musings on the White Band

Portraits: There are several portraits of Anne Boleyn. Roland Hui has written an article entitled ' A Reassessment of Queen Anne Boleyn’s Portraiture' which can be found here.

The NPG Portrait & notes:

This portrait is thought to be the most accurate and perhaps only portrait of Anne Boleyn. It is dated to somewhere in the second half of the sixteenth century, but I'm having trouble pinning down an exact date (if you have any info, I'd be really interested - please contact me!)

Anne is wearing a gown of black cloth. The turnbacks of the sleeves appear to be lined with some type of rich brown fur. The neckline of the gown is ornamented with pearls and gold beading. Under the gown she wears a blackworked shift. Around her neck she wears one string of pearls, ornamented with a golden 'B' for Boleyn, and a large golden chain. Her French Hood is black, decorated with two rows of pearls and a gold, pleated strip. The veil on the back of the French hood is black.

The Hever portrait:

This portrait is thought to be a copy of the NPG painting. It is very similar but has several differences, most noticeably Anne's hands holding a red rose have been included. The specifics of the costume are moderately unchanged. The sleeves, though, are noticeably un-Tudor (if I can use such a term).