British Museum Acquires Tudor Heart Pendant for £3.5 Million

The British Museum has acquired the 'Tudor Heart,' a rare gold pendant linked to Catherine of Aragon, for £3.5 million (€4 million). The jewel, lost for centuries, was discovered in 2019 by a metal detectorist in Warwickshire and dates to October 1518, likely commissioned for a tournament celebrating the betrothal of Princess Mary to the French Dauphin. The pendant features a Tudor rose and pomegranate bush, Catherine's emblem, with initials 'H' and 'K' on the reverse. The museum launched a fundraising campaign last autumn, raising funds from 45,000 individual donors and foundations including the National Heritage Memorial Fund (£1.75 million), the Julia Rausing Trust (£500,000), Art Fund (£400,000), and American Friends of the British Museum (£300,000). Director Nicholas Cullinan called it 'a piece of English history that few of us knew about, but that we can now all share.' The pendant is now on public display in the museum's permanent collection.