Lady in the Court of Queen Elizabeth in 1559, Jefferys Costume Plate, 1757

This is an original antique copper engraving with hand coloring, lettered in script "Habit of a Lady in the Court of Queen Elizabeth, in 1559." A young lady stands facing us, her hair dressed high with a row of pearls and framed by a tall lace ruff, with strings of pearls at her neck. Her coral red gown has a close bodice and sleeves patterned in gold scales, and a very full skirt gathered into a roll at the hips, open at the front over a blue underskirt. She holds a closed fan in her left hand, on the viewer's right.

The French caption below reads "Habit d'une Dame de la Cour de la Reine Elizabeth.", meaning dress of a lady of the court of Queen Elizabeth. The plate number 205 is engraved at lower right; no artist or engraver is named.

Thomas Jefferys, Geographer to his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, published A Collection of the Dresses of Different Nations, Antient and Modern in London in 1757, and this plate comes from the second volume. The title page names Holbein, Vandyke, Hollar and others as the sources of the designs, and the book also bears a French title, Recueil des Habillements de Différentes Nations, matching the French captions engraved beneath each English title. The year 1559 is that of Elizabeth's coronation, and the plate is one of several in the volume showing dress at her court. The date in the caption refers to the costume.

With its clear single figure and wide margins, the plate is easy to mount and frame, alone or as part of a small group.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.