GE to Frederic Leighton, London, [4? June 1862]
Title
GE to Frederic Leighton, London, [4? June 1862]
Title
GE to Frederic Leighton, London, [4? June 1862]
Sender
George Eliot
Recipient
Frederic Leigh
Date(s)
- 1862-06-04
Place
London
Letter Content
GE to Frederic Leighton, London, [4? June 1862]
Text: Mrs. Russell Barrington, The Life, Letters and Work of Frederic Leighton, 2 vols., George Allen and Unwin, 1906, II, 96-97.
Blandford Square, N.W.
Wednesday.
Dear Mr. Leighton,
I feel for you as well as myself in this inevitable difficulty -- nay, impossibility of producing perfect correspondence between my intention and the illustrations.
I think your sketch 79 is charming, considered in itself, and I feel now with regret that if we had seen each other and talked a little together after you had read the proof, the only important discrepancy might have been prevented. It is too late for alterations now. If it had not been, I should have wished Bardo's head to be raised with the chin thrust forward a little -- the usual attitude of the blind head, I think -- and turned a little towards Romola, "as if he were looking at her." 80
Romola's attitude is perfect, and the composition is altogether such as gives me a very cheering prospect for the future, when we have more time for preparation. Her face and hair, though deliciously beautiful, are not just the thing -- how could they be? Do not make yourself uneasy if alteration is impossible, but I meant the hair to fall forward from behind the ears over the neck, and the dress to be without ornament. 81
I shall inevitably be detestable to you, but believe that I am [The rest of this letter is lacking.]
Text: Mrs. Russell Barrington, The Life, Letters and Work of Frederic Leighton, 2 vols., George Allen and Unwin, 1906, II, 96-97.
Blandford Square, N.W.
Wednesday.
Dear Mr. Leighton,
I feel for you as well as myself in this inevitable difficulty -- nay, impossibility of producing perfect correspondence between my intention and the illustrations.
I think your sketch 79 is charming, considered in itself, and I feel now with regret that if we had seen each other and talked a little together after you had read the proof, the only important discrepancy might have been prevented. It is too late for alterations now. If it had not been, I should have wished Bardo's head to be raised with the chin thrust forward a little -- the usual attitude of the blind head, I think -- and turned a little towards Romola, "as if he were looking at her." 80
Romola's attitude is perfect, and the composition is altogether such as gives me a very cheering prospect for the future, when we have more time for preparation. Her face and hair, though deliciously beautiful, are not just the thing -- how could they be? Do not make yourself uneasy if alteration is impossible, but I meant the hair to fall forward from behind the ears over the neck, and the dress to be without ornament. 81
I shall inevitably be detestable to you, but believe that I am [The rest of this letter is lacking.]
Citation
George Eliot, GE to Frederic Leighton, London, [4? June 1862], Complete George Eliot Letters(2026), George Eliot Archive, edited by Beverley Park Rilett. https://GeorgeEliotArchive.org, Accessed September 7, 2026. https://www.georgeeliotarchive.org/items/show/92430