Comus in Milton's Masque of Comus, Georgian Stage Costume, Jefferys Print, 1757

This is an original antique copper engraving from 1757, colored by hand, lettered "Habit of Comus, in the Masque of Comus." Comus, the enchanter, steps forward and looks toward the viewer's left, holding a glass of red wine in one hand and a slender wand across his body in the other. A wreath of vine leaves and grapes crowns his head. He wears a white coat flared at the skirt and hung with bunches of grapes, a dark sash studded with stars across his chest, and a cloak of blue lined with red that falls behind him to the ground. Pale hose and blue boots complete the costume.

The English title is engraved in script below the image: "Habit of Comus, in the Masque of Comus." Beneath it, in smaller italic letters, is the French caption "Comus dans le Masque de Comus.", meaning "Comus in the masque of Comus". The plate number 240 is engraved at lower right. This sheet is trimmed closer than most in the series, and the plate number sits near the right edge. No engraver or artist is named on the plate.

The plate comes from the second volume of Thomas Jefferys' A Collection of the Dresses of Different Nations, Antient and Modern, published in London in 1757 by Jefferys, Geographer to his Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, in the Strand. The work has a parallel French title page, Recueil des Habillements de Différentes Nations, which is why each plate is captioned in both languages. The later plates of the volume form a series titled The Habits of the Principal Characters on the English Stage, recording how leading parts were dressed in the London theaters of the period. Milton's masque Comus of 1634 was revived on the London stage from 1738 in John Dalton's adaptation with music by Thomas Arne. The wine glass and wand are the emblems of the tempter.

The white figure with its touches of red and blue suits a dining room or a collection of theater and literary subjects.

This is an original antique print, not a modern reproduction. This item is sold unframed.