The inspiration for this piece came from a legend about one of history's most notorious monarchs. The story has it that Henry VIII of England, in an attempt to discredit his second queen, Anne Boleyn, and clear the marital path to wife number three, spread the word that Anne — in addition to the official line about being an adulterer — was possessed of a supernumerary breast.

Such a gland (real or imagined) was known as a "witch's teat" and all that name implies. If Anne Boleyn did actually possess anything unusual in that area, the so-called teat would probably have been little more than a superfluous nipple. Regardless, this chat about extra breasts did get people whispering that their queen might deserve a trip to the stake or dunking stool.

Anne was also rumored to be polydactyl — that is, having on her hands more than the usual number of digits. Presumably, these additional fingers further marked her as a witch and therefore a danger to national security.

Here I have presented the tragic queen prior to her visit to the chopping block with all of her alleged attributes prominently restored, in a portrait after the manner of Hans Holbein the Younger.