''Dido''

Illustration by Edmund Dulac

The subject of this illustration - Dido - is the legendary founder and first Queen of Carthage.

A number of myths surround Dido and this illustration by Dulac is based on the references to Dido in Virgil's Aeneid

wherein Dido is betrayed by the Trojan hero, Aeneas, only to cast a curse on the Trojans before ending her life. The

following text from the Aeneid seems particularly relevant to this image:

What pangs the tender breast of Dido tore,

When, from the tow'r, she saw the cover'd shore,

And heard the shouts of sailors from afar,

Mix'd with the murmurs of the wat'ry war!

All-pow'rful Love! what changes canst thou cause

In human hearts, subjected to thy laws!

Once more her haughty soul the tyrant bends:

To pary'rs and mean submissions she descends.

No female arts or aids she left untried,

Nor cousels unexplor'd, before she died.

"Look, Anna! look! the Trojans crod to sea;

They spread their canvas, and their anchors weigh.

The shouting crew their ships with garlands bind,

Invoke the sea gods, and invite the wind.

Could I have thought this threat'ning blow so near,

My tender soul had been forewarn'd to bear.

But do not you my last request deny;

With yon perfidious man your int'rest try,

And bring me news, if I must live or die.

You are his fav'rite; you alone can find

The dark recesses of his inmost mind:

In all his trusted secrets you have part,

And know the soft approaches to his heart.

Haste then, and humbly seek my haughty foe;

Tell him, I did not with the Grecians go,

Nor did my fleet against his friends employ,

Nor swore the ruin of unhappy Troy,

Nor mov'd with hands profane his father's dust:

Why should he then reject a just!

Whom does he shun, and whither would he fly!

Can he this last, this only pray'r deny!

Let him at least his dang'rous flight delay,

Wait better winds, and hope a calmer sea.

The nuptials he disclaims I urge no more:

Let him pursue the promis'd Latian shore.

A short delay is all I ask him now;

A pause of grief, an interval from woe,

Till my soft soul be temper'd to sustain

Accustom'd surrows, and inur'd to pain.

If you in pity grant this one request,

My death shall glut the hatred of his breast."

Historically, it seems unlikely that the meeting between Dido (who is thought to have lived at some time during the

9th Century BC) and Aeneas (who, as a veteran of the Trojan War is thought to have lived between the 14th and

13th Centuries BC) ever occured. Nevertheless, Dulac's inspiration - being the myth of the Aeneid - has produced a

gorgeous depiction of a seminal moment within that epic tale.

Complete image	Single Greeting Card (with matching Envelope) Code: ED D SGC Price: US$5.00	Detail (for reference)
	Reproduction on 12x18" sheet Code: ED D 12x18 Price: US$60.00

Our Greeting Cards

When presented on Greeting Cards, this image is prepared as a tipped-on plate - in hommage to the hand-crafted

approach typical of prestige illustrated publications produced in the early decades of the 20th Century. Each card is

hand-finished, with the image presented on Ivory card stock with an accompanying envelope. On the rear of each

card we also present some information about Edmund Dulac and this wonderful illustration. We have left the interior

of the cards blank so that you may write your own personal message.

Our large format reproductions

Each of our large format reproductions are prepared with archival quality materials and processes to ensure many years

of enjoyment. In addition, our reproductions are accompanied by explanatory material relating to Edmund Dulac

and this wonderful illustration.

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