Hanging in the art galleries of great industrials cities, the paintings ofthe Pre-Raphaelites portray the most famous beauties ever imagined: Guinevere,Ophelia, The Lady of Shalott, Medusa, La Belle Dame Sans Merci. Their beautyepic in its intensity.

These paintings depicted the fantasies of the the Victorianmale. Ideal women, they were objects of beauty to be watched and admired likeMadeline in the Eve of St Agnes. They waited for men, like Mariana, died forlove like Elaine, and spent eternity sighing after some knight who put honourand duty before all else like The Lady of Shalott. So faithful were they, thattheir love was not diminished by death. Isabella is seen carressing the pot ofBasil in which her love's head is concealed after his murder

Their only power was their beauty. This sometimes made them dangerous,captivating and therefore evil. Medusa, Marianne and Morgana La Fey were thefemmes fatales of the age. Sirens, nymphs and mermaids lured men to their death,or worse, an eternity of subjugation to women. Those who fell under the power ofthe Belle Dame sans Merci became so enraptured by the sensual indulgence sheoffered that they became oblivious to all that made them men.

These images, too pretty for art, have been demoted to greeting cardillustrations. Their mass appeal remains, but they have lost their mystique andmajesty.

But what of the women behind the pictures, portrayed as virgin one day andwhore the next? Did they possess any of the qualities portrayed in theirpictures? They were the supermodels of their time, acquiring fame and infamy.The public loved them but they were outcasts in society. Their lives wereshocking, tragic and exciting; more fantastic even than the lives of the womenthey portrayed.

Look at the woman behindthe paint.
Select a picture to see the real woman and read her story.

Isabellaand the Pot of Basil: William Holman Hunt
(Model:Fanny Waugh/Hunt)









Ophelia:John Everett Millais
(Model: Lizzie Siddal)







TheAwakening Conscience: William Holman Hunt
(Model:Annie Miller)

Fazio'sMistress: Dante Gabriel Rossetti
(Model: FannyCornforth)

This is the web-page ofthe unpublished novel and screenplay. If you want to know more about the PaintedLadies or the artists that made them beautiful, click the rose to email yourquestions.

TheRennie Mackintosh Page EnterHeaven

Visit TheVictorian Web or try TheDorcas Bee Homepage for more Pre-Raphaelites

If you like my ladies, you will love Linda's Orchids .

Thanks for the awards toCool Central and Severn Wonders!

Not forgetting The Lady,DianaDru, Linda Fortner and her orchids and John Hoita for the Best of the Best

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