A portrait of Anne Boleyn at Hever Castle in England has been revealed through infrared reflectography to have been altered to show her hands, countering rumors that she was a witch with six fingers. Tree-ring analysis dates the painting to around 1583, during the reign of her daughter Elizabeth I, making it the earliest known likeness of Boleyn. The underdrawing lacked hands, suggesting the unknown artist deliberately added them to rebut claims by Catholic activist Nicholas Sanders that Boleyn had six fingers.
This discovery matters because it reframes the portrait as a political tool used by Elizabeth I to rehabilitate her mother's image and legitimize her own reign. The painting directly responds to Sanders' writings that sought to undermine Elizabeth by portraying Boleyn as monstrous. It highlights how art was employed to shape historical narratives and counter propaganda in the Tudor court, offering new insight into the intersection of portraiture, monarchy, and religious conflict in 16th-century England.