Queen Elizabeth I’s Surviving Dress Silk To Go On Display At Hampton Court Palace
Queen Elizabeth I the Tudor Queen has been portrayed in many movies and history books, but even though she was known for her lavish clothing, little remains of the monarch’s wardrobe.
But this fall, the public will get to see what has survived of one of the first Queen Elizabeth’s dresses, as it goes on display at Hampton Court Palace, according to Town & Country. The dress was made of embroidered silk with gold and silver thread, and was preserved over the years as a decorative altar cloth for hundreds of years in Herefordshire, and the story is that it came to the town of Bacton via the queen’s close friend, Blanche Parry.
Exhibition curator Eleri Lynn states that this piece was the find of a lifetime back in 2017.
“When I saw it for the first time I knew immediately that it was something special. As I examined it, I felt as if I had found the Holy Grail, the Mona Lisa of fashion. None of Elizabeth I’s dresses are known to have survived, but everything we have learnt since then points to it being worn by Elizabeth.”
The silk Bacton altar cloth depicts a woodlands scene with deer, squirrels, and the flora which would be found in the woods.
The embroidered silk fabric was preserved as an altar cloth for centuries. https://t.co/Gg3Fz5Wr4f
— TOWN&COUNTRY (@TandCmag) August 18, 2019
But after centuries in a rural church, the fabric needed hours of restoration work, and now the piece is ready for its 21st century debut. It will be displayed next to the Rainbow Portrait of the queen, which includes a fabric similar to the silk altar fabric.
Lynn says that the piece of cloth was an amazing find as it is linked so closely to the Tudor Queen.
“We are very excited to display the Bacton Altar Cloth next to the legendary Rainbow Portrait, with its prominent similarities to the fabric of the cloth itself.”
The exhibition at the Hampton Court Palace will open on October 12 and run through the end of February. Tickets can be purchased through the Historic Royal Palaces website which offers discounts for students and senior citizens.
This year, another famous queen’s clothing and belongings were on display, and Queen Elizabeth II got a sneak preview of the Queen Victoria exhibition, reveals The Inquisitr.
Prince Andrew and Queen Elizabeth toured the showing dedicated to their several times great grandmother, which included dresses, accessories, and paintings of the queen, who is considered the great grandmother of the modern European monarchy.
