Katherine of Aragon

Katherine of Aragon carefully chose her pieces of jewellery to convey a message to her people: her choice of symbols of salvation outwardly showed off her pious character and values. We can see this in her c. 1525 portrait by Lucas Horenbout; she wears a chain of gold and pearls with an ornate tau cross pendant. The T-shaped tau cross is a symbol of salvation and was associated with her favourite religious order, the Observant Franciscans. In later years, Katherine’s daughter Mary was also painted wearing a similar pendant, as were two of Henry’s other wives, Jane Seymour and Catherine Parr. Queens were expected to be pious, but Katherine’s faith was personal as well. In the same portrait, she wears an IHS brooch, which is a Christogram for Jesus Christ, from the Greek name for Jesus, ΙΗΣΟΥΣ

Christians shortened the name of Jesus by only writing the first three letters of his name in Greek: ΙΗΣ = IHS.

It was important to Katherine that she show her people her devotion to God and to the Church.

Source:

Queens of bling: the importance of jewellery to Henry VIII's six wives, Dr. Nicola Taliis

https://www.npg.org.uk/.../mw01143/Katherine-of-Aragon...