Missing portrait of Henry VIII discovered after historian spots it in background of post on X

A famous portrait of King Henry VIII, long considered lost, has been found after an art historian spotted it in the background of a photo shared on social media.

The painting in question was once part of a famous set of 22 portraits commissioned in the 1590s by tapestry maker Ralph Sheldon. The portrait hung originally in Weston House, Sheldon’s Warwickshire home, but barely a handful of paintings from the collection survive today.

Art historian Adam Busiakiewicz, who works as a consultant for famous auction house Sotheby’s, spotted the painting in the background of a picture posted by the Warwickshire Lieutenancy on X on 4 July. The account had shared a photo of a reception held at the Shire Hall, and the portrait is just about visible in the background.

“The fact I was lucky to piece together [what it was] in an hour is very exciting,” Mr Busiakiewicz told the BBC.

“I spend a lot of time thinking about paintings and looking at people’s walls.”

In a blog post, Mr Busiakiewicz explained that the portrait’s distinctive arched top is specific to the other paintings in the Sheldon set, and is identical to the frames of other surviving paintings from the set are in. In addition, this particular composition of King Henry is featured in an engraving of the Long Gallery at Weston Hall by the antiquarian Henry Shaw.

Other surviving paintings from the set hang in the National Portrait Gallery, London, Eton College, and Knebworth House.

Once the historian alerted the local authorities to his suspicions, the Warwickshire County Council invited him to take a look.

Since the discovery, the portrait has been moved to the Council’s Museum Collections Centre for further research.

Mr Busiakiewicz said while he couldn’t provide an accurate value for the painting, he was aware that other Sheldon pieces had sold for about £200,000.

Sheldon’s 22-painting set was sold off at auction, and a majority of them still remain missing to this day. Research is currently ongoing to establish what happened to Henry VIII’s portrait and how it made its way to Shire Hall.

Warwick historian and interpretation manager for the Historic Royal Palaces, Aaron Manning’s research revealed a previously unknown state visit by Henry VIII to Warwick in September 1511.

Letters written by Henry VIII stored in the National Archives show the address he was writing from. While Tudor experts previously studied the contents of the letters, they did not deem the address significant.

Mr Busiakiewicz said: “This portrait of Henry VIII is a remarkable Tudor painting of one of England’s most recognisable Kings. Ever since the current owners of Warwick Castle sold a fabulous portrait of Henry VIII from the castle in 2015 Warwick has needed an important image of this King to stand in its place,” reported Coventry Live.

Mr Manning said: “He might be the most recognisable English king, but there are only so many portraits of Henry VIII that were painted in the Tudor period.

“It’s wonderful that a lost portrait from the 1500s, especially one commissioned for and displayed in a Warwickshire home, has been rediscovered; a really important addition to the town’s already rich history.”