Head Detail from Lady of the Bodenham Family

Lady of the Bodenham Family, attributed to John Bettes, c. 1540-45.

I personally would date this portrait to at least 1545 and maybe later, since it appears to my eye that the lady is wearing a farthingale underneath the skirt. Farthingales in England were first noted in the Royal warrants to 1545, for the Princess Elizabeth.

The gown is in black satin with black velvet lining. Again the edge of the partlet can be seen, and the honeysuckle blackwork is lovely. The foreskirt is also unusual in decorative motif. The hood is described in the book as being an English version of the French hood, as it is "flattened across the head to curve wide of the temples and then turned in at an angle to end over the ears".

Image from the book The Visual History of Costume, compiled and edited by Aileen Ribeiro and Valerie Cumming (1997). Page #79. Costume & Fashion Press, New York, NY, USA. ISBN: 0896762211