Dante Gabriel Rossetti - "To Caper Nimbly ..." and Borgia

“To Caper Nimbly in a Lady's Chamber to the Lascivious Pleasing of a Lute”, 1850

Pen and ink on paper.

210 mm x 172 mm (8 1/4 x 6 in.)
Courtesy Birmingham Museums & Art Gallery
"This original composition is followed fairly accurately by DGR's Borgia watercolour." - Rossetti Archive

Borgia, 1851-9

"Rossetti’s use of watercolour was unconventional. He created jewel like colours by applying it in an almost dry state. He also scratched, repainted and patched areas of this watercolour to accommodate changes. Rossetti also designed the frame which is one of his earliest surviving examples. It ... has medieval rosettes in the corners, referring to the Wars of the Roses in which Richard III fought."

9 1/8 x 9 3/4 in.
Courtesy Tullie House, Carlisle Museum and Art Gallery - look about half-way down page.