Once I was a clever boy learning the arts of Oxford... is a quotation from the verses written by Bishop Richard Fleming (c.1385-1431) for his tomb in Lincoln Cathedral. Fleming, the founder of Lincoln College in Oxford, is the subject of my research for a D. Phil., and, like me, a son of the West Riding. I have remarked in the past that I have a deeply meaningful on-going relationship with a dead fifteenth century bishop... it was Fleming who, in effect, enabled me to come to Oxford and to learn its arts, and for that I am immensely grateful.


Tuesday, 10 February 2026

British Museum secures Tudor locket


Art Net and the BBC News website reported the good news this morning that the British Museum has raised the funds to acquire for the nation the gold heart-shaped locket which celebrates the then seemingly happy marriage of King HenryVIII and Queen Katherine of Aragon. Thought to date from 1518, and to have been a commemorative piece from a jousting contest, the locket and chain were found by a metal detector in 2019.
 
The BBC News article is longer and more detailed with some excellent detailed images. It can be seen at British Museum to keep pendant linked to Henry VIII after campaign

The Art Net illustrated article about this rare survival, with its insights into the court culture of the early years of the reign, can be seen at British Museum Raises $4.8 Million to Snag Rare Tudor Pendant

The articles list some of the prominent contributors to the purchase fund, but it is significant that there were so many private contributors - 45,000 - like myself who gave small donations to save the locket.


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