The Flower Book - Comes he not?
1905
Accession number: 1953P5.13
Colour facsimile. Collotype print.
Information
A page from the facsimile edition of Burne-Jones' Flower Book, one of 38 watercolour designs reproduced by Henri Piazza et Cie, for the Fine Art Society, London in 1905.'Comes he not?' refers to a flower commonly known as 'love lies bleeding' or 'magic fountain', the amaranthus (Amaranthus caudatus). Burne-Jones had previously created three similar images of a woman, high up a tower, awaiting her lover: two of Hero, and one of Dorigen. The earliest image is circa 1867, a tile design for Hero, waiting for her lover atop a tower, with a small lamp at her side (current whereabouts unknown- see 'William Morris Tiles' by Richard and Hilary Myers). The second, is taken from Chaucer's 'Cantebury Tales', and is 'Dorigen of Bretaigne Awaiting the Safe Return of Her Husband' (V & A, 1871). The last is, 'Hero Lighting the Beacon for Leander' (Owens Art Gallery, Sackville, New Brunswick, 1875-77).
- Purchased, 1953.
- © Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery
Makers
| Association | Artist | Organisation |
|---|---|---|
| Artist | Sir Edward Burne-Jones | - |
Inscriptions
| Type | Position(s) | Method | Date(s) | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| A girl watching for her lover from the top of a tower. | ||||
| Label | - | Printed | - | description of the scene, written by the artist. printed by the artist, herein a facsimile |
Literature
| Author(s) | Date(s) | Publisher | Pages |
|---|---|---|---|
| The Flower Book. | |||
| Edward Burne-Jones | 1994 | Taschen | Pl. XIII |
| Hidden Burne-Jones, Works on paper by Edward Burne-Jones from Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery | |||
| 2007 | Dan Giles, Ltd., London | p. 72 | |
Related work & resources
Related Resources
-
graphicCreated by Nadezhda Pavlova
Discuss this work
Start a discussion about this work.
You need to login to discuss this work. Click here to login.
If you are not yet registered click here to become a member.
Find out more about membership