An illustration for the Gilbert and Sullivan play Princess Ida, completed by William Russell Flint (1880–1969) for the 1909 printing of Savoy Operas, a compilation of four Gilbert and Sullivan works. Flint began illustrating at age 14, working as an apprentice lithographer while studying at the Royal Institute of Art, Edinburgh. After a time as a medical illustrator, Flint found work with The Illustrated London News. He produced several literary illustrations, including for the Savoy Operas and a 1912 edition of Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales.
This illustration depicts the end of Act II. The men who sneaked into the college disguised as women have been found out and arrested, and Prince Hilarion's father forces his way into the college to negotiate his release. Ida refuses, and the act ends with the promise of a war between the sexes to come.
Illustration: William Russell Flint; restoration: Adam Cuerden
This image was chosen at random from a selection of 4. ()