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Art History Series: Thomas Cromwell’s Book of Hours

  • Writer: Ladureena
    Ladureena
  • Jan 11, 2024
  • 2 min read

Updated: Feb 26, 2024


Thomas Cromwell Painting

Thomas Cromwell has been an important figure in English history at the time of Henry VIII - he was a chief minister and a powerful proponent of the English Reformation which in turn helped Henry VIII marry Anne Boleyn.


Kate McCaffrey, Alison Palmer and Dr. Owen Emerson discovered Thomas Cromwell's Book of Hours in the Wren Library at Trinity College Cambridge last year (2023). The book has been kept there since 1660, but the connection to Cromwell was unknown.


This wonderful book was created in 1527 by Germain Hardouyn. A copy of it was also made for Queen Anne Boleyn, as well as her rival Queen Catherine of Aragon. It is in its original silver-gilt binding and thanks to the work of the team, they also revealed the master who made it - Pierre Mangot circa 1529-1530. He was the Goldsmith to King Francis I of France. It is printed on vellum, with hand-illuminated woodcuts, bound in velvet-covered boards, set with silver gilt and garnets.





This is the same book that you can see in the painting by Hans Holbein the Younger - Portrait of Thomas Cromwell (1532-1533). The original painting is lost, but we know of it from three copies which are in the Frick Collection in New York, the Chichester-Constable Collection in Yorkshire and the National Gallery in London, which I recently visited. The copy in the Frick collection is considered the best of them.


Unfortunately I was unable to see the prayer book as it was on display at Hever Castle at the time of my trip, but I hope to have the opportunity further down the line at the next place that displays it. As far as we know, it is the only object found in a painting from the Tudor period that has survived to this day. You can view its contents on the Trinity College website.





Kind regards, Julia



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