This is the Tudor's Dynasty podcast.

And now, Hands on History with Heather.

Hello and welcome to Hands on History with the Tudor's Dynasty podcast.

My name is Heather Darcy.

Some of you might know me for my research into Anna of Cleves.

I am the author of Anna, Duchess of Cleves, the King's beloved sister, and also the

forthcoming Children of the House of Cleves, Anna and her siblings, which will be out in June of 2023.

And I am absolutely delighted to be joined by Alexander Ames, the associate curator of the Rosenbach Museum and Library.

You might have heard the name Rosenbach before because it is, of course, the Rosenbach portrait of Anna of Cleves that is on the cover of my book.

Welcome and thank you so much for being here with me today.

I'm really delighted to have the opportunity to be here with you.

Thanks for having me.

How did you come to work at the Rosenbach?

Well, I sort of like to think that I was foreordained to end up in a curatorial role at the Rosenbach. Of course, that's all with

20-20 hindsight. But when I was young, living in rural Minnesota, I grew up in sort of the

north woods of Minnesota. I developed a passion for rare books and manuscripts and historic house

museums. And as I pursued my education first in

Minnesota and then on the East Coast, I really wanted to find a professional environment

that would combine my interests in the world of book collecting and her books and archives

with the world of historic house museums and the fine

and decorative arts. And even though these are very closely aligned areas of professional and

scholarly interests, there aren't that many institutions that really bring those worlds together

...