Tudor royal jewel discovered in Warwickshire

[A REMARKABLE GOLD PENDANT on a chain – associated with Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon – has been unveiled by the British Museum. The gold, heartshaped pendant is attached to a 75-link gold chain via an enamelled ‘hand’.

The beautiful, ornate item was discovered by a metal-detectorist in Warwickshire. He reported it to the local Finds Liaison Officer of the Portable Antiquities Scheme employed by Birmingham Museum Trust, who in turn contacted Historic England.

The front of the pendant is decorated with a red and white Tudor rose motif entwined with a pomegranate bush, the symbols of Henry and Katherine. They stem from the same branch, which sits above the inscription + TOVS + IORS – a pun on the French for ‘always’ (toujours).

The back shows the letters H and K –for Henry and Katherine – in Lombardic script, linked by ribbon, again with the legend + TOVS + IORS.

Analysis dates the pendant as early 16th century, from 1509-1533 AD with a most likely date of around 1521: the design of the pendant is like that used on horse bards at a joust in Greenwich in 1521. q