Know how every castle has a hall of portraits? Know how all the family people are displayed there? Know how there's always a black sheep lurking in someone's family history? Well, this enormous portrait is for real, hanging there with the rest of the royal family, had to do a double take. Any one know who this man could be? <BR>Your help is always appreciated. <BR>Dr. Betty

If it's the painting I think you mean "he looks like he's wearing a negligee?" it's the third earl, painted by Jacob de Wit.

The most "interesting" suit of armour I've ever seen was made for Henry VIII. If my memory serves me correct, it is in the Tower of London. <BR> <BR>The "interesting" part is what they call the "codpiece". Since this is a clean board (supposedly), I will leave it at that.

I'm interested! I will be in London next week, where is this painting located? I have seen some very weird things while over here & would like to add this to my list!

As Dr Betty said, in the heading, it's in Glamis Castle, (where the Queeen Mother was born)near Forfar, some 600 miles north of London. <BR> <BR>Do drop in for the afternoon

Yes dear Sheila, you are absolutely correct. Hours after I posted this I had dinner with mon belle soeur who is an Anglophile of the first degree (has a collection of a zillion different changings of the guard). She had toured Scotland years ago and produced from her bookcase the Glamis Castle booklet. And there he was, the 3rd Earl of Strathmore and Kinghorne and his sons John (later the 4th Earl) and Patrick Lyon of Auchterhouse. All I can say is, weird, weird, weird. What's the story? The 3rd Earl is standing with a bare belly, swathed in delicately placed silks. Kinghorne (interesting name don't you think?) is seated and his armour is a see through mesh, exposing his shoulders down to his feet. His royal robe is placed just so to preserve modesty, in true Austin Powers fashion. <BR> <BR>Lauren, do explain about the codpiece and the derivation of the term. Are we talking fish? <BR> <BR>Nancy, when you are in London, spend the day in Richmond and stroll along the Thames, taking in the Ham House. Built in 1610 and an excellent example of an English Jacobean house, rooms full of the original furniture an paintings by Van Dyck. The husband and wife in those days had separate bedrooms decorated to illustrate their interests. The wife's bedroom has a frescoed ceiling, painted by some Italian I think (they were big into frescoes right?)with the lady of the house depicted as some kind of goddess, and it was not a saintly image as I recall. Richmond is the last stop on the subway. I discovered this in "Short Escapes in Britain," my very first Fodors book. If you get the book, there is a great walking tour of Richmond. <BR> <BR>One final piece about the Glamis Castle tour. A very nice lady took us through describing all the different rooms, art, history and china patterns. There was a china closet in one of the halls between rooms (not a very prominent place)that was filled with dark blue (if my memory serves me)china. She indicated it was Bohemian china and seemed rather disgusted by it. I have to think it was Kinghorne's place settings.

With respect to the definition of the world cod, we are not talking fish!! <BR>Delicacy compels me to refer you to page 269 of the Third Edition of the American Heritage College Dictionary for the appropriate definition of an archaic use of the term. I fear that I might transgress on Madame Fowler's delicate nature were I to reveal the <BR>appropriate and applicable definition. <BR>I might even upset Rex.

Thank you Al. I never would have thought to look in the dictionary. Mine is Tormont Webster's Illustrated Encyclopedic Dictionary, alas, no illustrations of a codpiece, but I think I get the picture now.