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JOHN HOSKINS (C. 1590-1665)

Queen Henrietta Maria (1609-1669)

c.1632

RCIN 420891

The costume worn by Henrietta Maria in this miniature is probably that worn by the sitter to play the role of Divine Beauty in a performance of ‘Tempe Restor’d’ at Whitehall on Twelfth Night in 1632. Elements of fashionable costume such as the lace collar have been combined with features specific to masque dress, such as the star patterning of the fabric. Inigo Jones’s 1632 design for the queen’s masque costume includes a ruff and crown, which in the miniature has been replaced by a lace collar (very similar in design to the piece of scalloped lace of the same date displayed nearby) and bonnet decorated with a cascade of white feathers. The combination of watchet (light blue) and carnation was especially popular in masque dress, and immediately signified the virtuous nature of the wearer, these colours being linked with the Virgin Mary, who was traditionally represented wearing blue and pink robes. Costumes worn during court masques could be more revealing and less structured than everyday fashions. As such, masque dress lent itself particularly well to the intimate format of the portrait miniature.

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