Mary, Queen of Scots was executed on this date in 1587, after a few whacks with an ax. Click here and here for pics of her death mask, eerie and yet hauntingly beautiful, to see how this tortured soul appeared.
Note: There is some debate as to the authenticity of this mask. It is worth pointing out that this BBC News article described this as Mary Queen of Scots’ death mask for an exhibition some years back.
Lynne Francis wrote @
Quite stunned at these photos. All these years and I never even realised that a death mask of Mary existed!!! She really does look lovely, very beautiful. You can just imagine just how captivating she was in life, and especially in her youth. Such a great shame she didn’t inherit her mother or her cousin’s political astuteness; life could have been so different for her otherwise.
The Compulsive Writer wrote @
I’ve done some traveling in the UK and I did make it to Holyrood, which included a visit to (insert count dracula moohaa voice here) Mary’s bed chamber. Love that stuff. Glad I found your blog…I am a writer of historical fiction…but I can’t get enough of the real juicy, can’t make it up stuff. In fact, most of what I read (when I’m not writing) are historical bios. Great POST!
AnneM wrote @
Okay, CompulsiveWriter is my new favorite for saying “dracula moohaa voice”! bwahahaha
Anne Barnhill wrote @
This is awesome! She really was lovely, even at midlife after all the harrowing experiences of her life and her long captivity. No wonder Elizabeth was jealous! Thanks, great post!
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Wow, these always floor me! She was quite lovely, wasn’t she…