"The Blessed Damozel" is perhaps the best known poem by

Dante Gabriel Rossetti Gabriel Charles Dante Rossetti (12 May 1828 – 9 April 1882), generally known as Dante Gabriel Rossetti (), was an English poet, illustrator, painter, translator and member of the Rossetti family. He founded the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhoo ...

, as well as the title of his painting (and its replica) illustrating the subject. The poem was first published in 1850 in the

Pre-Raphaelite The Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood (later known as the Pre-Raphaelites) was a group of English painters, poets, and art critics, founded in 1848 by William Holman Hunt, John Everett Millais, Dante Gabriel Rossetti, William Michael Rossetti, Jam ...

journal '' The Germ''. Rossetti subsequently revised the poem twice and republished it in 1856, 1870 and 1873.

Poem

The poem was partially inspired by

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; Edgar Poe; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic. Poe is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales of mystery and the macabre. He is wid ...

's poem "

The Raven "The Raven" is a narrative poem by American writer Edgar Allan Poe. First published in January 1845, the poem is often noted for its musicality, stylized language, and supernatural atmosphere. It tells of a distraught lover who is paid a myst ...

", with its depiction of a lover grieving on Earth over the death of his loved one. Rossetti chose to represent the situation in reverse. The poem describes the damozel observing her lover from heaven, and her unfulfilled yearning for their reunion in heaven. The first four stanzas of the poem are inscribed on the frame of the painting:

Paintings

''The Blessed Damozel'' is the only one of Rossetti's paired pictures and poems in which the poem was completed first. Friends and patrons repeatedly urged Rossetti to illustrate his most famous poem,Treuherz et al. (2003), p. 100 and he finally accepted a commission from William Graham in February 1871. After the work was completed Graham requested a

predella In art a predella (plural predelle) is the lowest part of an altarpiece, sometimes forming a platform or step, and the painting or sculpture along it, at the bottom of an altarpiece, sometimes with a single much larger main scene above, but oft ...

, the lower part of the painting, on December 31, 1877. His total cost was £1157.

Alexa Wilding Alexa Wilding (born Alice Wilding, c. 1847 – 25 April 1884) was one of the favourite models of the Pre-Raphaelite artist Dante Gabriel Rossetti, featuring in some of his finest paintings of the later 1860s and 1870s. She sat for more of h ...

modelled the damozel in Paradise, Wilfred John Hawtrey modelled the child–angel, and the probable model for the left–hand angel was

May Morris Mary "May" Morris (25 March 1862 – 17 October 1938) was an English artisan, embroidery designer, jeweller, socialist, and editor. She was the younger daughter of the Pre-Raphaelite artist and designer William Morris and his wife and artists' ...

. File:FRLeylandsdrawingroom1892.jpg, 320px, Six Rossetti paintings as hung in Leyland's drawing room, 1892. ''The Blessed Damozel'' hangs third from the left. (Click on any painting for its article.) poly 80 200 25 200 25 280 80 280

Monna Rosa ''Monna Rosa'' is the title of two oil paintings by Dante Gabriel Rossetti, both portraits of Frances Leyland, the wife of shipping magnate Frederick Richards Leyland, a regular patron of Rossetti. The earlier and smaller painting was completed ...

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Mnemosyne (Rossetti) __NOTOC__ ''Mnemosyne'', also titled ''Lamp of Memory'' and ''Ricordanza'', is an oil painting by Dante Gabriel Rossetti begun in 1875 or early 1876 and completed in 1881. Jane Morris was the model, and Frederick Richards Leyland bought the pa ...

poly 250 190 290 190 290 280 250 280 Dante Gabriel Rossetti The Blessed Damozel

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Proserpine (Rossetti painting) ''Proserpine'' (also ''Proserpina'') is an oil painting on canvas by English artist and poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, painted in 1874 and now in Tate Britain. Rossetti began work on the painting in 1871 and painted at least eight separate versio ...

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Veronica Veronese ''Veronica Veronese'' is an oil painting by Dante Gabriel Rossetti painted in 1872 with Alexa Wilding as the model. The painting was conceived as a companion to '' Lady Lilith.'' Rossetti sold the painting to one of his best clients, shipping ...

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Lady Lilith ''Lady Lilith'' is an oil painting by Dante Gabriel Rossetti first painted in 1866–1868 using his mistress Fanny Cornforth as the model, then altered in 1872–73 to show the face of Alexa Wilding. The subject is Lilith, who was, according to ...

desc none Another, later version is in the

Lady Lever Art Gallery The Lady Lever Art Gallery is a museum founded and built by the industrialist and philanthropist William Lever, 1st Viscount Leverhulme and opened in 1922. The Lady Lever Art Gallery is set in the garden village of Port Sunlight, on the Wirral ...

. Frederick Richards Leyland commissioned eighteen paintings from Rossetti, not counting unfulfilled commissions. Soon after Leyland acquired his first Rossetti painting, he and Rossetti explored the idea of a Rossetti

triptych A triptych ( ; from the Greek adjective ''τρίπτυχον'' "''triptukhon''" ("three-fold"), from ''tri'', i.e., "three" and ''ptysso'', i.e., "to fold" or ''ptyx'', i.e., "fold") is a work of art (usually a panel painting) that is divided ...

, which was eventually formed with ''

Mnemosyne In Greek mythology and ancient Greek religion, Mnemosyne (; grc, Μνημοσύνη, ) is the goddess of memory and the mother of the nine Muses by her nephew Zeus. In the Greek tradition, Mnemosyne is one of the Titans, the twelve divine chil ...

'', an 1879 replica of ''The Blessed Damozel'' painted by Rossetti himself, and ''Proserpine''.''Waking Dreams'', p. 204. Three additional Rossetti paintings were then hung in Leyland's drawing room, all of which Leyland called "stunners."''Waking Dreams'', p. 26 (figure 5).

Music

Several pieces of music were based on the poem, including those for orchestra by

Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most infl ...

Granville Bantock Sir Granville Ransome Bantock (7 August 186816 October 1946) was a British composer of classical music. Biography Granville Ransome Bantock was born in London. His father was an eminent Scottish surgeon.Hadden, J. Cuthbert, 1913, ''Modern Music ...

(1891), Edgar Bainton (1907), Ernest Farrar (1907); for piano by

Arnold Bax Sir Arnold Edward Trevor Bax, (8 November 1883 – 3 October 1953) was an English composer, poet, and author. His prolific output includes songs, choral music, chamber pieces, and solo piano works, but he is best known for his orchestral musi ...

(1906); for string quartet by Benjamin Burrows (1927); and a 1928 choral by Julius Harrison. The poem was the inspiration for

Claude Debussy (Achille) Claude Debussy (; 22 August 1862 – 25 March 1918) was a French composer. He is sometimes seen as the first Impressionism in music, Impressionist composer, although he vigorously rejected the term. He was among the most infl ...

's ''

La Damoiselle élue ''La Damoiselle élue'' (''The Blessed Damozel''), L. 62, is a cantata for soprano soloist, 2-part children's choir, 2-part female (contralto) choir (with contralto solo), and orchestra, composed by Claude Debussy in 1887–1888 based on a text b ...

'' (1888), a cantata for two soloists, female choir, and orchestra. A 2007 popular song of the same name by

Tangerine Dream Tangerine Dream is a German electronic music band founded in 1967 by Edgar Froese. The group has seen many personnel changes over the years, with Froese having been the only constant member until his death in January 2015. The best-known lineup ...

appears on their album ''

Madcap's Flaming Duty ''Madcap's Flaming Duty'' is the ninety-eighth release and twenty-seventh major studio album by Tangerine Dream. Along with ''Cyclone'' (1978) and '' Tyger'' (1987) it is one of the few Tangerine Dream releases to feature vocals. The album is a t ...

''.

Notes

Sources

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Blessed Damozel Victorian poetry Collections of the Lady Lever Art Gallery Paintings by Dante Gabriel Rossetti Paintings in the Harvard Art Museums Angels in art Adaptations of works by Edgar Allan Poe Paintings based on literature

Poem

Paintings

Music

See also

Notes

Sources