Rivals: de Vere, Hatton, and the Queen Elizabeth Sieve Portrait (SNC 61)

Part 61 - Quentin Metsys' 1583 "Sieve" portrait of Queen Elizabeth celebrates her chastity. Are there any clues in it hinting at the rivalry between its likely patron, Christopher Hatton, and Edward de Vere?

[risingson]

Brilliant. Sorry for my ignorance in one of my comments in a previous video, you're obviously well aware of Waughs work already. It was one of your first videos I'd come across on this topic. Absolutely love all this! So much hidden in plain sight.

[bluebellwood]

John, this was an amazing episode. So full of information. I just happened to think that it was unusual to see figures in the background like that. Then you explained.
So much of it is new to me, which is always exciting as a lover of history. Eg, I didn't know about the families colours or the rivalry friendly or not with Hatton. I was enthralled from beginning to end.
That sort of work keeps me subscribed and looking forward to the next episode.

[ronroffel]

Your videos pack more information in them now than ever before. Your investigation into the authorship mystery is impressive.

I discovered a couple of things about the inscription you discuss beginning at 2:21. At 3:10 you ask what the odd character above the letter A is on the fifth line. It could be what clerks called a "tittle" which was a horizontal mark written above a letter to indicate a letter was missing from a word. They appear frequently in Elizabethan and Jacobean texts. But your suggestion that it acts like a mathematical symbol is compelling and likely correct.

The gematria sum of line 2 in the inscription is 73, and in the Latin Alphabet Repeating Count, the value is equal to DDDD, or 40.

The shape of the inscription shown at 5:17 is like an arrow pointing to the queen. It draws attention to itself.

The double N in "NNO" is likely a clue that something is going on beneath the obviously allegorical portrait. The gematria sum of the word happens to be 40, neatly illustrating the tria sunt omnia principle. This does not look like coincidence to me.

When you add the gematria values of the letters on the far left of the inscription, including the joined double N, you get 80. The ampersand and the letter R beside it are ignored because: a) the ampersand has no gematria value and b) the letter R is not along the far left-hand margin.

I believe you have discovered another clue in the on-going mystery of the queen at 9:39 which is a remarkable device. Notice that the two ruffs on the courtiers are painted as if they were one piece of clothing which could indicate we are to see them as joined.

I am surprised that you didn't recognize the Roman numerals at 11:02. When added up, they give us 17.

And I think you might have to add the number of the pillars the courtiers are pointing to with their spears. Whether you count the pillars from front to back or vice versa makes a difference how to add the numbers up. I would need to see an enlargement to accurately add them up.

Another thing I noticed was that the collar behind the queen looks like two moons rather than the lace you would expect to see. The moon was Diana's primary symbol and the queen was often compared to her. Diana was the virgin huntress. So is this saying the queen was somehow "double" a virgin? Or is there another way to look at this?

An x-ray or infrared study of the painting would show if there were any over-paintings done and what the original sketch was like. I doubt the current owners of the painting would allow that.

[ArchiveHunter]

Thanks for this video, John. Really intriguing! I'm no expert, but aren't there four 'o's on Elizabeth's dress? One in the otherwise meaningless and gravity-defying loop of pearls, one on the gold ornament, one on the pearl underneath, and the sieve. Also, isn't there a massive 'V' on the dress just where De Vere might have got to first before Hatton (without wishing to be too indelicate)?

[Tvarisch]

The double N of NNO is curious, I'm sure you've noted them. The five N's of the Sonnets title page are playing a game. In SONNETS and LONDON, the second N in both words are at exactly 45° and corroborate the geometry. The first are both at over 45° and are therefore a little thinner. "Never" is at roughly 38° and so the fattest, and I have just noted points directly at the 2nd N of LONDON. There may be other pairings.
I had seen that londoN points at the left foot of the lower case n of "and". I've just seen that this left leg is perfectly in line with the right leg of the n of Imprinted.
Obviously you can get two V's out of an N but there's more surely

[patricktilton]

That "V I I V V" could also add up to "5 + 1 + 1 + 5 + 5 = 17" couldn't it? Separating those two last Vs makes that part of the 5-letter rebus also equal "40" on its own, as you've interpreted it here.

[sonofculloden]

Last two words Affa and nno - you have the A and the O - alpha And omega - also - the aff means from or out of - and the double nn looks like a W

[simontmitchell]

Could a page indicate agape? The golden deer (hind) could allude to American adventures? - Interesting that Hatton's foot touches the globe. The deer is also a symbol representing God of course, searching for knowledge, and with Artemis the virgin huntress.
The page's eyes seem fixed on the (golden) halberd, another symbol of the Rose Cross:
צלבו רדים
צלבורדים
The Golden Hind, Drake's ship which Hatton sponsored around 1583, was first called the Pelican, 'halberd' in Greek is 'δόρυ με πελέκι' which means 'spear with pelican'.
I'm guessing here but I believe in Hebrew tired and ignorant (or virginal) can be represented by the same word (anyone confirm) ?
Love your work!

[theamazingmystico]

The full stanza is –

stanco riposo e riposato affanno,
chiaro disnore e gloria oscura e nigra,
perfida lealtate e fido inganno,

It translates, approximately (with my version of the second line [which may be a little off]), to –

tired rest and rested breathlessness,
clear disgrace and glory obscure and black,
perfidious loyalties and trustworthy deceit,

I think the second line of the stanza, which is not on the painting (it is hidden, obscured), is the key. The lines express contradiction (e.g., clear - obscure/black; disgrace - glory). Also, Elizabeth is shown in dressed in black, just as the line refers to glory (Elizabeth Gloriana) being “black.” No one in Elizabethan times would have openly referred to Elizabeth as a clear disgrace, or that her glory was somehow obscure and black. By using the innocuous line “tired rest and rested breathlessness, ” the implication is only that Elizabeth is a mysterious contradiction in her chastity. However, when the second line is considered, the point becomes that the contradiction in her nature may be that the myth of her being Virgin Queen is false and that there is a hidden “disgrace” concerning her chastity (perhaps an illegitimate son). The contradiction of “glory obscure and black” may also allude to her black dress and the darkness of the painting, which could symbolize her glory as a woman being obscured or hidden by something black (again, perhaps an illegitimate son).

The third line could be significant too. It reads, “perfidious loyalties and trustworthy deceit.” Perfidious mean disloyal to what should command one’s fidelity or allegiance. One meaning of “a trust” is "a secret, ” so “trustworthy deceit” could refer to a deceitful secret/secret deceit. “Trustworthy” refers to something that is true (in Latin verum can mean truly [adverb]). So, perhaps Edward de Vere is the target of the deceit. Also, The dancing figures in red an yellow each hold what appears to be a short spear or javelin (in Latin javelin is verum [noun]).