The Prince of the Glow Worms
Richard Doyle
Wood engraving by the Dalziels
4½ x 3¼ inches
Anthony Montalba, Fairy Tales from All Nations, facing 62.
Apparently a lyrical scene which shows the ‘little people’ in their floral setting, this design is in fact an unsettling representation of the preamble to an assassination, with two of the miniature killers having drawn daggers as they approach the supine king as he lies on his flowery couch. Doyle often intermingles threat and innocence, the child-like and adult concerns, this time providing an efficient illustration to Montalba’s bizarre fairy-tale.
Scanned image and text by Simon Cooke. [Click on image to enlarge it, and mouse over the text for links.]