Artwork
H Beard Print Collection
H Beard Print Collection is a print by the Romanticist artist Smyth. It dates from 27 and is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum.
About this work
This print shows the final scene from Linda di Chamouni as staged at Her Majesty's Theatre. It’s an 1848 engraving by Smyth, part of The Illustrated London News.
A theater review on the back page shares the same date—May 27, 1848—so you can read both the picture and the critics’ words together.
Take a look at the Victoria and Albert Museum.
Overview
This 1848 engraving by Smyth depicts the final scene of the opera Linda di Chamouni as performed at Her Majesty's Theatre. It was published on page 347 of The Illustrated London News, dated May 27, 1848.
Subject & Meaning
The print captures the climactic moment of Linda di Chamouni, an opera staged at a prominent London theatre. The scene's specifics are not detailed in the image's context, but it reflects the opera's popularity and the theatre's significance in mid-19th-century London's cultural life.
Technique & Style
Executed by engraver Smyth, the work showcases the detailed, linear qualities characteristic of mid-19th-century engraving. The choice of medium and style was suited for mass publication in periodicals like The Illustrated London News.
History & Provenance
Originally printed in The Illustrated London News (May 27, 1848), the engraving is accompanied on its reverse (page 348) by clipped articles, including a review of the Royal Italian Opera, providing contextual layers to the print's creation and reception.
Context
The print's dual nature—with the opera scene on one side and a theatre review on the other—offers a unique glimpse into contemporary theatrical criticism and public interest in opera during the Victorian era.
Artist & collection
Artist
These prints by an unnamed artist from the mid-1800s show scenes from everyday life in black and white.
