Emma Harding as Queen of the Wilis in The Phantom Dancers. Lithograph coloured by hand by Child after John Brandard, 1847

The dancer is set against a night sky; in the background are mountains and a lake and behind her are shrubs and bulrushes and a tomb with a cross inscribed 'Giselle'. She stands half-turned to her right, weight on her right leg, the left pointed to the front and her head turned proper left; her right arm is raised to shoulder height and flexed, with a branch of greenery in her hand. The left arm is held out and curved at the wrist. Her wavy long hair is crowned with a coronet of orange blossom buds and from her shoulders sprout wings. The low-necked knee-length dress has a pointed bodice trimmed centre front with flowers and diaphanous short sleeves; on the skirt is a tiny white-fringed hip-skirt. The diaphanous over-skirt is trimmed with white flowers and foliage. On her feet are white ballet slippers tied with ribbons.

Bequeathed by Lady Mary Evans

The print depicts Emma Harding as Queen of the Wilis in The Phantom Dancers, a spectacular half-spoof of the popular ballet Giselle, in which an innocent peasant girl kills herself when she discovers her lover is an aristocrat and already engaged; she becomes a wili, the spirit of a jilted girl, dedicated to revenging herself on men. It was performed at the Adelphi Theatre in 1837.
Emma Harding, as queen of the wilis, presided over a spectacular scene where, after Giselle's death, the scene changed to a ghostly hall, illuminated with blue fire, where she was received into the spirit world. In the second act, shown here, Emma Harding holds the queen's wand, a sprig of rosemary. Traditionally rosemary symbolises remembrance and was worn at weddings and funerals. It has particular relevance to Giselle, as garlands of rosemary were often placed on the coffins of young lovers who died of a broken heart.

The Phantom Dancers was performed in 1846 as a spectacular half-spoof of the popular ballet Giselle, in which an innocent peasant girl kills herself when she discovers her lover is an aristocrat and already engaged; she becomes a wili, the spirit of a jilted girl, dedicated to revenging herself on men.
Emma Harding, as queen of the wilis, presided over a spectacular scene where, after Giselle's death, the scene changed to a ghostly hall, illuminated with blue fire, where she was received into the spirit world. In the second act, shown here, Emma Harding holds the queen's wand, a sprig of rosemary. Traditionally rosemary symbolises remembrance and was worn at weddings and funerals. It has particular relevance to Giselle, as garlands of rosemary were often placed on the coffins of young lovers who died of a broken heart.

S.2620-1986