Her Grace the Newfoundland Has Arrived, and She Brought Her Best Hat
Her Grace has arrived, and she has brought her best hat. A fluffy black Newfoundland gazes out with gentle brown eyes from beneath a black velvet cap trimmed with pearls, gold braid, a jeweled ornament, and a dramatic sweep of black ostrich plumes. A crisp white lace ruff frames her face, and her gown is a feast of embroidery: green and gold silk worked with curling vines, golden leaves, and plump red pomegranates. The slashed sleeves show glimpses of black velvet beneath, and a faded floral wall hanging fills the background.
Those embroidered pomegranates carry a real piece of Tudor history. The pomegranate was the personal emblem of Catherine of Aragon, the Spanish princess who became Henry VIII's first queen, and it appeared in decorations and textiles connected to her. In art of the period, the fruit was also a symbol of fertility and abundance. Meanwhile, the starched white ruff became a hallmark of later Tudor fashion, growing larger and more elaborate through the Elizabethan years. Ruffs took real effort to maintain, as they had to be carefully starched and set into shape.
Our duchess, of course, would never fuss over her own ruff, as she surely has a whole staff for that. Big, soft, and serene, she carries all that finery with the calm patience Newfoundlands are known for. It is hard to imagine a more gracious lady of the court.
