Is This A Portrait Of Lady Jane Grey?

She was queen for only nine days and no one was even sure exactly what she looked like. The mystery may finally have been solved, however.

A painting thought to be of Lady Jane Grey, who was queen of England from July 10-19 1553, has been found in a house in London.

Here is a photo of the painting.

Up to now there had been no paintings found that were made of Lady Jane Grey when she was alive. There is at least one for every other English monarch (king or queen) since 1500.

Experts from University College London have dated the portrait to the early 1500s. Faint writing on it says 'Lady Jayne', written at the same time as it was painted.

There were only a few women called Lady Jane (or Jayne) around at the time and some researchers think it is definitely Lady Jane Grey, although others are not so sure.

It may be a copy of the original painting and made shortly after she died, but if it is of her, then it is the closest we have come to finding out exactly what she looks like.

Lady Jane became queen after Edward I, who was her cousin, died in 1553. She was crowned at the Tower of London but it wasn't long before Mary I claimed the throne instead.

Mary had Lady Jane beheaded soon afterwards, when she was aged only 17.

This photo shows part of a huge painting called The Execution of Lady Jane Grey, which hangs in the National Gallery in London. It was painted in 1833, nearly 300 years after Lady Jane's death.

If you'd like to see the whole painting, click here.

Image: The Execution of Lady Jane Grey (detail) by Paul Delaroche, 1797-1856.
1833, Oil on canvas, 246x297cm. Bequeathed by the Second Lord Cheylesmore, 1902 © the National Gallery, London

Jane was described as very clever and "prettily shaped and graceful", and the portrait shows a slim young woman in a fancy red dress holding a book.

It is very hard to correctly identify such old paintings and sometimes people even make fake copies, claiming they are old.

A painting hanging in the National Portrait Gallery was once thought to be of Lady Jane Grey, but in fact turned out to be of Catherine Parr, the sixth wife of Henry VIII.

Whether the picture is the only surviving portrait of Lady Jane Grey or not, paintings like this don't get discovered very often.

So, what do you think? Is this a portrait of Lady Jane Grey?

You can explore some more portraits in Face It!, from Show Me and the National Portrait Gallery.

If you want to find out more about what life was like when Lady Jane Grey was alive, take a look at Show Me's Tudors topic page, where you'll find lots of games and makes to keep you busy.