Henry VIII’s love token secured by British Museum after centuries lost

Henry VIII and Katherine of Aragon’s marriage didn’t last – he divorced her in 1533 – but a golden heart pendant linked to their union did survive, and has now been secured for permanent display at the British Museum.

The 24-carat-gold heart, complete with the couple’s initials in red, and a picture of the Tudor rose and a pomegranate tree, was acquired by the British Museum after it raised 3.5 million pounds ($4.8 million) to save it from being sold to a private collector.

The pendant — a symbol of the couple’s initially devoted but ultimately doomed marriage — was lost for hundreds of years.

But in 2019 it was discovered by a metal detectorist in a field in Warwickshire, and under British treasure laws, museums across the country have the chance to acquire significant historical finds before they go for general sale.

The pendant is the only piece of jewellery which still exists from Henry’s 24-year marriage to Katherine, and features a banner which says “tousiors” or “always” in old French.

The item captured the imagination of about 45,000 individuals who donated 380,000 pounds alongside funding provided by the National Heritage Memorial Fund and other trusts to raise the price tag, half of which goes to the detectorist and half to the landowner.

“This beautiful survivor tells us about a piece of English history few of us knew, but in which we can all now share,” British Museum director Nicholas Cullinan said in a statement on Tuesday.

The pendant was believed to have been created in 1518 to celebrate the betrothal of Henry and Katherine’s daughter Mary to the French heir apparent.

But by the early 1530s, Henry had fallen out of love with Katherine and in love with Anne Boleyn, and was desperate for a male heir to secure the Tudor dynasty. Henry broke away from the Catholic Church to annul his marriage to Katherine.