"What did Anne Boleyn look like?" is a question that is often asked, and various actresses have been criticised for not being true to Anne Boleyn's looks - Natalie Dormer with her blue eyes and Miranda Raison for playing her blonde. But what did Anne Boleyn look like?
Did Anne Boleyn have dark hair?
Did Anne Boleyn have dark eyes?
Was Anne Boleyn beautiful?
Or was she the Anne Boleyn of Nicholas Sander's description, complete with an extra finger, jaundiced skin, a wen and a projecting tooth?
Claire Ridgway, founder of the Anne Boleyn Files and author of several books on Anne Boleyn, looks at how she was described by her contemporaries. Claire also talks about portraits and the contemporary images we have of Anne.
Links:
“Anne Boleyn’s Appearance” video from 2011- https://youtu.be/jfTI2ffP9j8
Did Anne Boleyn have six fingers? https://youtu.be/WXeGSaHf85Y
Coronation seating plan – see image in my article at https://www.theanneboleynfiles.com/1st-june-1533-the-noble-triumphant-coronation-of-queen-anne-boleyn/
1534 medal - https://www.britishmuseum.org/research/collection_online/collection_object_details/collection_image_gallery.aspx?assetId=216454001&objectId=953013&partId=1
Find out more about Lucy Churchill's replica of the medal at http://www.lucychurchill.com/AnneBoleynMedal.php
Roland Hui's article on the Lady of the Garter image can be read at https://tudorfaces.blogspot.com/2017/04/anne-boleyn-as-lady-of-garter.html
Portraits:
National Portrait Gallery - https://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/portrait/mw00142/Anne-Boleyn
Hever Castle Anne Boleyn with Rose - https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Anneboleyn2.jpg
John Hoskins miniature of Anne Boleyn - https://www.theanneboleynfiles.com/the-john-hoskins-miniature-of-anne-boleyn/
You can see a few more at https://www.theanneboleynfiles.com/resources/anne-boleyn-pictures/