Tudor portrait rediscovered on @X to be redisplayed in museum. I’m helping the Warwickshire Museum Service raise funds to conserve and redisplay Ralph Sheldon’s Lost Portrait of King Henry VIII. Click on the link to find out more. https://t.co/PAgW2cfu57 pic.twitter.com/hXmRVHZsvK
— Adam Busiakiewicz (@Adam_FineArt) March 6, 2025
Like many art historians, Adam Busiakiewicz has a keen eye, especially when it comes to gilt frames. It’s exactly this skill that allowed him to discover a long-lost portrait of King Henry VIII…in the background of a social media post
While scrolling X (formerly Twitter) one day, Busiakiewicz stumbled upon a picture shared by the Warwickshire Lieutenancy, in which a group of people are attending a reception at Shire Hall in England. Peppered across the green walls are several portraits, but one in particular caught Busiakiewicz’s attention, even though it was blurry, unassuming, and shrouded in a shadow. Unlike the other paintings, this one was mounted in a frame with an arched top—a feature unique to a series of portraits commissioned by local politician and tapestry maker Ralph Sheldon during the 1590s.
“Seeing this round topped portrait immediately reminded me of [that] famous set of likenesses commissioned by Sheldon for his home, the Weston House, in Warwickshire,” Busiakiewicz wrote in a blog post about the discovery. “They are notable for each having arched tops, as they were once incorporated into an architectural frieze of the Long Gallery at Weston.”
Sheldon’s commissioned portrait of Henry VIII showcases the king donning his signature plumed hat and extravagant gold chains around his neck. In one hand, he firmly grasps a sword, its tip slung over his shoulder. It’s unclear how, exactly, the portrait ended up at Shire Hall, but for Busiakiewicz the murky provenance didn’t come as a surprise. Out of the 22 portraits in Sheldon’s collection, only a handful have been located.
To confirm his suspicions, Busiakiewicz compared the royal portrait with an 1839 engraving created by the antiquarian Henry Shaw, which illustrated a view of the Long Gallery at Weston.
“Just above the fireplace is a detail featuring the very same composition as found in the Warwick painting, showing Henry VIII in a plumed hat, wearing elaborate golden chains, and holding a sword with his other hand in view,” Busiakiewicz continues.
Busiakiewicz ended up alerting the local authorities about his possible find, after which the Warwickshire County Council invited him to further inspect the portrait on-site. When Busiakiewicz finally saw the painting in-person, while perched atop a stepladder, he found it to be “striking,” per the BBC.
“I hope the portrait will be more admired,” Busiakiewicz says. “It’s Warwickshire’s most famous image.”
Since then, the painting has been moved to Warwickshire County Council’s Museum Collections Center. To learn more, check out Adam Busiakiewicz’s in-depth blog post about the discovery.
While scrolling X one day, Adam Busiakiewicz discovered a long-lost portrait of King Henry VIII in the background of a photo posted by the Warwickshire Lieutenancy.
Delighted to host a reception for Lieutenancy ambassadors to thank them and my Deputy Lieutenants for all they do across #Warwickshire pic.twitter.com/gJOssu2Zj5
— Warwickshire Lieutenancy (@Warkslieutenant) July 4, 2024
“Portrait of Henry VIII of England,” Hans Holbein the Younger, 1540 (Photo: Galleria Nazionale d’Arte Antica, Public domain)
The portrait was originally commissioned by Ralph Sheldon during the 1590s, but it’s unclear how it ended up at Shire Hall in Warwick, England.
On his own X account, Busiakiewicz meticulously mapped similarities between the Henry VIII portrait and others in Sheldon’s collection.
The local Warwickshire politician and tapestry maker Ralph Sheldon’s set of 22 portraits of Kings, Queens and international figures was dispersed in 1781. They are distinctive for having rounded tops. Here are surviving images of Wolsey, Richard III and the Earl of Essex. pic.twitter.com/1yMSGfFPMH
— Adam Busiakiewicz (@Adam_FineArt) July 7, 2024
Adam Busiakiewicz: Website | Instagram
Sources: Missing Henry VIII portrait found after random X post; Ralph Sheldon’s Portrait of Henry VIII Reidentified
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