Even amid the pomp and splendor of King Henry VIII’s iconic portraits, one accessory stands out: a bejeweled dagger, clutched by the mighty monarch’s left hand. Though the weapon’s function was ...
Left: Hans Holbein the Younger, Portrait of Henry VIII (around 1540). Right: An engraving by George Vertue, depicting “Henry the VIII’s dagger’ (1749). Henry VIII: Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, ...