Elizabeth I As Never Seen Before!

by Tom Sykes Feb 14, 2013 12:00 PM EST

Careworn image of Elizabeth may have been suppressed

queen-elizabeth-i-portrait — Artist unknown--but long attributed to the school of Marcus Gheeraerts the Younger (ca. 1561/62-1636). Elizabeth I (1533-1603), oil on oak panels, ca. 1593. Courtesy of the Elizabethan Gardens, Manteo, North Carolina. (Courtesy of the Elizabethan Gardens, Ray Matthews; Photographer)

Cate Blanchett she 'aint.

But this warts-and-all painting of Queen Elizabeth I, depicting her with facial wrinkles, is being exhibited at the Folger Shakespeare Library in Washington, DC, after being newly authenticated as the real deal.

Its only marginally less flattering than Kate's new pic.

According to The Telegraph it was produced "by the studio of Gheeraerts in the early-mid 1590s."

The painting is now owned by the Elizabethan Gardens in North Carolina’s Outer Banks.

Thomas Herron, an author and English professor at East Carolina University, noted that the reason for the portrait’s obscurity may lie in Elizabeth’s efforts to control her image.

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Tom Sykes is a writer and journalist, and he edits The Royalist blog for the Daily Beast. Tom has worked for many publications, including a stint as a nightlife reporter and gossip columnist for the New York Post. He has written several books, most recently helping John Taylor of Duran Duran write and edit his autobiography, published by Dutton. Tom lives in London and Ireland.

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About the Author

Tom Sykes

THE ROYALIST, updated several times daily, reports on all aspects of the British Royal Family. With breaking news and the latest gossip, great pictures and informed commentary, the Royalist is essential eyeballing for fans of the world’s most famous family.