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3:58 am
May 16, 2011
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I was wondering whether it’s possible if Anne had blue eyes, like dark blue?
Everyone said her eyes were “almost black” but did they ever really say she had brown eyes? Almost black could mean a really dark blue, couldn’t it?
***Just wondering…?
• Grumble all you like, this is how it’s going to be.
12:36 pm
June 7, 2010
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I’ve always accepted Anne’s eyes to be a dark brown. It seems, and this is my opinion, that Elizabeth had her mother’s dark eyes.
But, there is a painting that shows her with blue eyes (but outfited in Elizabethan clothing). This painting is by Franz Pourbus.
"By daily proof you shall find me to be to you both loving and kind" Anne Boleyn
8:22 pm
June 7, 2011
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A person’s eye color is determined by the genes inherited from their parents. The types of alleles received from the parents are assigned to certain chromosomes. The dominant genes are expressed and the recessive genes are hidden. In the development of the iris those genes tell enzymes to produce and place a certain amount of melanin in the iris to form the eye colour. Brown is dominant over blue, so if Elizabeth’s eye’s were brown, then it is likely than Anne’s were too. The ‘Mary Boleyn’ portrait has brown eyes, as does the disputed Thomas Boleyn portrait. John Hoskins painted a miniature of Anne, which is supposedly based on the lost Holbein original of Anne, a contemporary image. Her eyes are brown. I’ve never met anyone with such dark blue eyes they appear black personally, only those with deep brown eyes. I think Anne and Elizabeth had brown eyes, since most of the images depict them with brown eyes. The Franz Pourbus painting is considered wrongly identified, due to the inscription of ‘Anne Boleyn’ being later than the date of the creation of the painting.
"It is however but Justice, & my Duty to declre that this amiable Woman was entirely innocent of the Crimes with which she was accused, of which her Beauty, her Elegance, & her Sprightliness were sufficient proofs..." Jane Austen.
1:15 pm
February 10, 2010
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That’s really interesting – my Dad had blue eyes and my mother has brown. My brother has blue-grey eyes and mine are hazel. Not sure how that works at all!
I’ve never taken the Pourbus painting seriously as a depiction of Anne – wrong fashions (I know Anne was a leader of fashion but she wasn’t that far ahead of her time!) and the face looks wrong to me. If it was meant to be Anne I’ve always thought it was a highly romanticised version.
1:29 pm
January 3, 2012
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Hmm interesting question. I think Anne’s eyes were dark brown almost to the point of being black.
However Mary is sometimes described as having light brown hair and blue eyes, so it’s a little confusing to actually what is the truth of the matter.
It is entirely possible to have 2 children with different hair and eyes colour. My brother and I are a prime example of that. Whilst my brother, is tall and muscular with light brown hair (what little he has) and brown eyes, I’m short and dumpy with dark brown hair and blue/grey eyes.
Genetics are funny things so anything can happen when DNA explodes..
Personally I think that both Mary and Anne were alike in colouring and George was perhaps more like his Uncle Howard in looks, although I happy to say nothing like him in temperment.. (Uncle Howard is one block I’d like to cheerfully strangle)
Semper Fidelis, quod sum quod
2:57 pm
June 7, 2011
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Tell me about it! I have brown eyes, as does my mum and dad. Typical Scottish looks I guess. My husband has blue eyes, as does all of his family apart from his two grandfathers. Our daughter has blue eyes with brown in the centre, so she’s a mixture of both our eyes. Her hair is light auburn, my hair and my husbands hair is dark brown, I think she inherited her hair colour from my husbands father. Brown eyes being dominant over blue and green is common, but there are obvious exceptions. I still think Anne’s eyes were defiantly dark brown though, I imagine something like Johnny Depp’s perhaps?
"It is however but Justice, & my Duty to declre that this amiable Woman was entirely innocent of the Crimes with which she was accused, of which her Beauty, her Elegance, & her Sprightliness were sufficient proofs..." Jane Austen.
6:06 pm
February 24, 2010
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I think Anne had brown eyes. Same as Elizabeth.
I have dark brown eyes like my Dad. My brother has blue eyes like my Mom. I’m 5 ft. My brother is 6 ft 2 inches. I look very Italian. My brother looks very Slovak. My husband has green eyes. He is Irish. My son has dark brown eyes. He looks like my Dad and me.
Ellie, thanks for the eye candy!
6:51 pm
January 3, 2012
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Elliemarianna said
Tell me about it! I have brown eyes, as does my mum and dad. Typical Scottish looks I guess. My husband has blue eyes, as does all of his family apart from his two grandfathers. Our daughter has blue eyes with brown in the centre, so she’s a mixture of both our eyes. Her hair is light auburn, my hair and my husbands hair is dark brown, I think she inherited her hair colour from my husbands father. Brown eyes being dominant over blue and green is common, but there are obvious exceptions. I still think Anne’s eyes were defiantly dark brown though, I imagine something like Johnny Depp’s perhaps?
That’s very interesting Ellie.. My ancestry is Scottish although apart from my name I don’t look anything like a Scot. My Mum is a wee slip of a thing with green eyes strangely enough. My dad’s eyes were blue so I get that from him along with a lot of other things I could well do without LOL. I guess my brother’s brown eyes come from my Grandfather..
As it goes DNA wise I guess our family is a real mixed bag a sort of Heinz 57 type of thing..
Still as the saying goes it takes all sorts to make a world, and who knows what any of us will find in our family line if we were to dig back far enough..
Semper Fidelis, quod sum quod
8:25 pm
December 5, 2009
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Boleyn said
Personally I think that both Mary and Anne were alike in colouring and George was perhaps more like his Uncle Howard in looks,
Boleyn, is there any particular reason why you think George may have looked like Norfolk? I should point out that I’m weeping a the thought!
I’m in love with these faces, Sharon.
8:39 pm
February 24, 2010
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Louise,
They are fun aren’t they? 
9:08 pm
December 5, 2009
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I hate you lot! I’ve just done an eye colour/paternity test on the internet. My parents both have brown eyes and mine are blue…….it seems I’m illegitimate……thanks!
10:26 pm
June 7, 2011
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Boleyn said
Elliemarianna said
Tell me about it! I have brown eyes, as does my mum and dad. Typical Scottish looks I guess. My husband has blue eyes, as does all of his family apart from his two grandfathers. Our daughter has blue eyes with brown in the centre, so she’s a mixture of both our eyes. Her hair is light auburn, my hair and my husbands hair is dark brown, I think she inherited her hair colour from my husbands father. Brown eyes being dominant over blue and green is common, but there are obvious exceptions. I still think Anne’s eyes were defiantly dark brown though, I imagine something like Johnny Depp’s perhaps?
That’s very interesting Ellie.. My ancestry is Scottish although apart from my name I don’t look anything like a Scot. My Mum is a wee slip of a thing with green eyes strangely enough. My dad’s eyes were blue so I get that from him along with a lot of other things I could well do without LOL. I guess my brother’s brown eyes come from my Grandfather..
As it goes DNA wise I guess our family is a real mixed bag a sort of Heinz 57 type of thing..
Still as the saying goes it takes all sorts to make a world, and who knows what any of us will find in our family line if we were to dig back far enough..
My family are a mixture of many clans, I am descended from the Gleigs, Frazers, Dewars and Leonards lol! We either have black/dark auburn hair with brown eyes, or dark blonde with toffee green coloured eyes in my family. The Celts were a dark haired race, however, who would bleach their hair with lime (sp?).
"It is however but Justice, & my Duty to declre that this amiable Woman was entirely innocent of the Crimes with which she was accused, of which her Beauty, her Elegance, & her Sprightliness were sufficient proofs..." Jane Austen.
10:27 pm
June 7, 2011
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Louise said
I hate you lot! I’ve just done an eye colour/paternity test on the internet. My parents both have brown eyes and mine are blue…….it seems I’m illegitimate……thanks!
It can skip a generation!
"It is however but Justice, & my Duty to declre that this amiable Woman was entirely innocent of the Crimes with which she was accused, of which her Beauty, her Elegance, & her Sprightliness were sufficient proofs..." Jane Austen.
11:08 pm
April 9, 2011
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Don’t forget that things like hair colour and eye colour genetic wise aren’t as straightforward as say the ability to tongue roll. The gene for tongue roliing occurs on one pair of chromosomes. Eye colour and hair colour is determined by something like 3 different genes, on different chromosomes. Plus the fact you have more than 2 options for colour its not a straight simple case of autosomal inheritanc. My family is a classic example. Dad had black hair, mum had brown hair but they had children that got brown, red and blonde.
11:29 pm
January 3, 2012
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Louise said
Boleyn said
Personally I think that both Mary and Anne were alike in colouring and George was perhaps more like his Uncle Howard in looks,
Boleyn, is there any particular reason why you think George may have looked like Norfolk? I should point out that I’m weeping a the thought!
I’m in love with these faces, Sharon.
Actually Louise I’ve got no idea why I said that. LOL. Norfolk was handsome in his way and from the mental pictures I have of George in my head, George was very handsome. I don’t think Thomas B was at all attractive in fact, although a good stateman and diplomat so not knocking his skills here he rather reminds me of a rat or a ferret in looks (Neither of which I would want running up my trouser leg).
Semper Fidelis, quod sum quod
12:15 am
October 28, 2011
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Louise is there any descriptions of George that have survived? I’m curious, as I haven’t quite settled on my mental picture of him yet. Although I always think of Anne and George having dark hair and brown eyes, and I can’t shake that image of Mary that is-not-Mary from the portrait where the sitter is wearing ermine. So I imagine Mary had light brown hair and brown eyes.
4:48 am
January 9, 2010
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I always imagine Mary with blonder hair and brown eyes and Anne and George with darker hair and brown eyes. I don’t know why I picture Anne and George having the same colouring but I do 
10:51 am
October 28, 2011
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Bella44 said
I always imagine Mary with blonder hair and brown eyes and Anne and George with darker hair and brown eyes. I don’t know why I picture Anne and George having the same colouring but I do
Me too 
1:18 pm
January 3, 2012
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I’ve just been looking at some of the pictures of the Howard clan, one in particular has caught my eye (pardon the pun), John Howard the first Duke of Norfolk has eyes that are very similar to Anne’s eyes.. It’s a pity that there are no pictures of Elizabeth Howard, or none that i’ve seen anyway, as I feel that Anne, Mary, and George were all Howard in looks.
Semper Fidelis, quod sum quod
5:31 pm
December 5, 2009
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Olga said
Louise is there any descriptions of George that have survived? I’m curious, as I haven’t quite settled on my mental picture of him yet. Although I always think of Anne and George having dark hair and brown eyes, and I can’t shake that image of Mary that is-not-Mary from the portrait where the sitter is wearing ermine. So I imagine Mary had light brown hair and brown eyes.
I’ve never read a description of George’s looks. The nearest is Cavendish’s ‘Metrical Visions’. He says of George:-
‘God gave me grace, dame nature did her part,
Endowed me with gifts of natural qualities’
Coming from Cavendish, who was no supporter of the Boleyns, George was clearly extremely handsome. I imagine him as being dark like Anne, but I don’t really know.
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