[Victorian Web Home —> Visual Arts —> Illustration —> Phiz —> Mystery in Scarlet —> Next]
The Apparition. Phiz (Hablot K. Browne). 1866. Wood engraving. Errym's A Mystery in Scarlet. Courtesy Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Click on image to enlarge it.
Text Illustrated
And then a yearning desire seized upon Markham to address his ghostly visitant (82).
Commentary
The Mystery in Scarlet (upper right) is slightly more visible here than in the illustration published in the first instalment, but his face remains a mystery. He does not look much like the "apparition" that Markham incorrectly believes he sees. The effect is less uncanny than comic. The scene takes place "after midnight" (p. 97); the clock (upper left) appears to read five minutes after one. The Mystery’s long, blonde natural hair nearly glows, but, otherwise, it does not appear that Phiz found very convincing or dramatic Rymer's insistence that to Markham, the Mystery appears to be a ghost.
Image scan by the Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Commentary by Rebecca Nesvet, University of Wisconsin, Green Bay. Formatting, color correction, and sizing by George P. Landow[You may use this image without prior permission for any scholarly or educational purpose as long as you (1) credit the person who scanned the image and Indiana University and (2) link your document to this URL in a web document or cite the Victorian Web in a print one.]
Bibliography
Errym, Malcolm J [James Malcolm Rymer]. A Mystery in Scarlet, leading serial of The London Miscellany. Ed. James Malcolm Rymer, 1, no. 7 (1866): 1. From the copy in the collection of the Wells Library, Indiana University, Bloomington. Courtesy Lilly Library, Indiana University, Bloomington.
Last modified 13 July 2019