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The putative ''Marlowe portrait'' is an unsigned portrait on wooden panel, dated 1585, which was discovered in 1952 or 1953 at
One account dates the discovery of the portrait to late 1952, during major renovations to the college's Old Court which destroyed many ancient interiors. The wood panels had been used to support a gas heater installed in a student's room, above the room that had been assigned to Marlowe 370 years earlier. When a new heater was installed, the panels were discarded and put in a
Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus"), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th century through to the early 19th century ...
. It has been proposed that the portrait depicts the English playwright Christopher Marlowe
Christopher Marlowe, also known as Kit Marlowe (; baptised 26 February 156430 May 1593), was an English playwright, poet and translator of the Elizabethan era. Marlowe is among the most famous of the Elizabethan playwrights. Based upon the ...
(1564–1593), though several scholars have suggested that this is unlikely.
Discovery
The painting was discovered inCorpus Christi College, Cambridge
Corpus Christi College (full name: "The College of Corpus Christi and the Blessed Virgin Mary", often shortened to "Corpus"), is a constituent college of the University of Cambridge. From the late 14th century through to the early 19th century ...
in 1952 or 1953. Contradictory accounts of its discovery exist.
One account dates the discovery of the portrait to late 1952, during major renovations to the college's Old Court which destroyed many ancient interiors. The wood panels had been used to support a gas heater installed in a student's room, above the room that had been assigned to Marlowe 370 years earlier. When a new heater was installed, the panels were discarded and put in a skip
Skip or Skips may refer to:
Acronyms
* SKIP (Skeletal muscle and kidney enriched inositol phosphatase), a human gene
* Simple Key-Management for Internet Protocol
* SKIP of New York (Sick Kids need Involved People), a non-profit agency aidin ...
. The room's occupant recovered them for reuse, but noticed the dirty and badly-damaged portrait and took the pieces to the college librarian.
A conflicting account states that the portrait was discovered in 1953, during renovations of the college Master's lodge. A passer-by noticed two pieces of wood amongst a pile of builder's rubble that had laid in the rain for several days, which proved to be the two parts of the portrait.
The portrait's history from its 1585 creation to its 20th century rediscovery is unknown. It is not listed in an 1884 inventory of paintings held by Corpus Christi College, nor in a 1790 catalogue of Cambridge University's paintings by Robert Masters
Robert Masters (15 June 1879 – 29 June 1967) was a New Zealand politician of the Liberal and later United parties, as well as a cabinet minister.
Biography Early life and career
Masters was born in 1879 at Greymouth and was educated at Grey ...
. The wood is badly split and has nail holes, suggesting that the panels had been put to various mundane uses over the years.
Description
The portrait measures and is painted on wood panels, made from Baltic oak imported from Poland or Lithuania. It depicts a young man, with long hair and a light beard, with his arms folded. He is expensively dressed in a darkdoublet
Doublet is a word derived from the Latin ''duplus'', "twofold, twice as much",
1585 paintings
Christopher Marlowe
16th-century portraits
English paintings
Corpus Christi College, Cambridge
Panel painting
Paintings in Cambridge