Above, a sixteenth-century woodcut by an unknown artist, printed in A Joyfull Medytacvon to All Englande (1509) by Stephen Hawes. The pomegranate and Tudor rose are clearly depicted as the king and queen’s heraldic badges.
Katherine of Aragon is one of several historical figures who used the pomegranate as their emblem or device. It was an ancient symbol of fertility and rebirth, and in images of the Virgin and Child also a symbol of the resurrection and Christ’s passion. For Katherine, it was significant as the pomegranate was incorporated into the royal arms of her parents, Ferdinand and Isabella after their conquest of Granada. It was a play on words with the name Granada and the pomegranate in Spanish granada.
Katherine came to England to marry the Tudor heir, Arthur, who died prematurely shortly after the marriage. After the death of Arthur, the pomegranate was featured in the decoration of the chantry chapel built for him. The pomegranate was officially associated with Katherine once she married Henry VIII in 1509, when the pomegranate and Tudor rose were often depicted together on royal documents, symbolising the royal union and also that of England and Spain. Examples of her emblem can be seen in some of the portraits of Katherine, livery badges, and also in some buildings from the period.
by Unknown artist
oil on panel, early 18th century
NPG 163
© National Portrait Gallery, London
If you look closely at the gold cuffs on the dress in the portrait above you can just about make out the embroidered pomegranates, recognisable by the opening in the skin exposing the seeds inside.
The London museum has a livery badge depicting the two merged emblems, which would have been made after the marriage of Katherine to Arthur and then later Henry. https://www.londonmuseum.org.uk/collections/v/object-28833/katherine-of-aragon/
After the divorce of Henry VIII and Katherine the use of the pomegranate did not diminish completely. As explained by Johnston ‘the ancient symbol continued to be used in English books, with various seeds of meaning.’1 However, it was no longer associated with the Tudor rose. The fact that it had been used for millennia as a symbol of fertility and rebirth allowed it to continue to be used in decoration and art even if its political/royal signification had changed.
The pomegranate appeared in printing from later in the 16th century during the reigns of Mary and Elizabeth, however, as Johnston suggests, it is likely to have had a different signification. During the reign of Mary I the pomegranate appeared as a mint mark on the silver groat, however, Mary’s use of the emblem is of course used as a nod towards Mary’s parentage.2
Below is a link to a portrait of Katherine which has relatively recently been identified to be of her. Dated to around 1520, it is a rare surviving example of a portrait painted during her lifetime, when she was around 35 years old. On her gold sleeves are depicted pomegranates in black thread. The portrait is on loan to the National Gallery of London with permission from the Archbishop of Canterbury & the Church Commissioners, so unfortunately I cannot reproduce the image, but you can see it in the following link.
NPG L246; Katherine of Aragon – Portrait – National Portrait Gallery
Today, pomegranates can often be seen adorning the tomb of Katherine, left by visitors to Peterborough Cathedral, proving the legacy of the connection between Katherine and the pomegranate still lives on.
I hope you enjoyed this little bite of pomegranate history.
Thanks for reading.
Emily
- Johnston, p.173
- Johnston, p.165
Bibliography
Johnston, Hope. “CATHERINE OF ARAGON’S POMEGRANATE, REVISITED.” Transactions of the Cambridge Bibliographical Society 13, no. 2 (2005): 153–73. http://www.jstor.org/stable/41154945.
Starkey, David. Six Wives: The Queens of Henry VIII. United Kingdom: Chatto & Windus, 2003.
https://www.peterborough-cathedral.org.uk/home/katharine-of-aragon.aspx
https://thehistorypomegranate.com/2025/02/06/katherine-of-aragons-use-of-the-pomegranate-emblem/?fbclid=IwY2xjawIYqzdleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHWYJTJW0whVWwKrXYuKG2hMoebcopnEVvRrc4oY9XRJ3Fpfix7JdusEKPw_aem_wzwXFTN0JsyYfQjj_ejjWA
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