Re: Clothing Jesters in Period Style

[Marybeth Lavrakas <lavrakas@email.unc.edu>]

Poster: Marybeth Lavrakas <lavrakas@email.unc.edu>

Henry VIII's well-known hjester, Wil (Short?  I think...) is seen in
several period pictures with the king.  In most of them he is dressed
plainly; I can think of one where he is carrying one of those fool's wands
(er, what are they called?), and one where he has a small monkey perched
on his shoulder.  He is even portrayed in one of the illuminations in
Henry's private prayer book.  I have never seen a portrait of Jane (Shore?
I'm bad on last names this morning), who was Mary Tudor's fool, but I do
remember reading somewhere that the servant woman portrayed in the the
Hampton Court painting showing Henry, Queen Jane, Edward, Mary and
Elizabethh all together (NOT painted from life, of course!) is Jane (this
is because her 'opposite number' in the painting is Wil).  She's dressed
rather plainly as well, but does have a neat pink & white stripped skirt.

Any of these illustrations should be findable in one of the coffee-table
type books about Henry's court.

Kathryn Rous

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