Study for the Head of Nimue in "The Beguiling of Merlin"
Datec. 1872-1873
Artist
Edward Burne-Jones
(British painter, 1833–1898)
MediumWatercolor with gouache on paper, mounted on wood
Dimensions30 × 20 in. (76.2 × 50.8 cm)
frame: 41 1/4 × 31 1/4 in. (104.8 × 79.4 cm)
frame: 41 1/4 × 31 1/4 in. (104.8 × 79.4 cm)
Credit LineSamuel and Mary R. Bancroft Memorial, 1935
Object number1935-40
On View
Not on viewClassificationsDRAWING
Label TextThe model in this study for The Beguiling of Merlin, at the Lady Lever Art Gallery, National Museum in Liverpool, is Maria Cassavetti Zambaco, with whom Burne-Jones had a passionate affair. Shortly after returning to London and fleeing an unhappy marriage in Paris, Zambaco became romantically involved with Burne-Jones. The relationship ended dramatically when Zambaco attempted, unsuccessfully, to drown herself in the Thames. 
