Elizabeth I of England survive infancy. Her mother was Henry's second wife, Anne Boleyn. At birth, Elizabeth was the heir presumptive to the throne of England. Her older half-sister, Mary, had lost her position as a legitimate heir when Henry annulled his marriage to Mary's mother, Catherine of Aragon, to marry Anne, with the intent to sire a male heir and ensure the Tudor succession. She was baptised on 10 September 1533; Archbishop Thomas Cranmer, the Marquess of Exeter, the Duchess of Norfolk and the Dowager Marchioness of Dorset stood as her godparents. A canopy was carried at the ceremony over the three-day old
Plimpton Sieve Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I the royal coat of arms on the right. The sieve represents her self-identification as the "Virgin Queen" by association with Tuccia, the Roman Vestal Virgin who proved her virginity by carrying water in a sieve. The painting has three areas of text in yellow uppercase letters: There are at least two other versions of Gower's "Sieve Portrait". One is known only through an 18th-century description by George Vertue. The other measures 34 x 24 inches and is now in a private collection in Florida. Plimpton Sieve Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I The Plimpton "Sieve Portrait of Queen Elizabeth I" is