Art, Symbol & Imagination
Princess Badoura in the Garden: Edmund Dulac
Original caption: Princess Badoura
Badoura stands in an imagined Chinese garden, surrounded by flowering branches and brightly plumed birds, in Dulac's frontispiece to Housman's Arabian Nights retelling. The princess initially refuses marriage because she fears losing the authority and freedom she enjoys at her father's court. Later, separated from Camaralzaman, she disguises herself as a prince and becomes ruler of the Ebony Isles. This opening portrait introduces a resourceful heroine whose political initiative drives the second half of the tale, rather than illustrating a single encounter in the garden.
Read the source pageLoading your collection…
Citation
Edmund Dulac. "Princess Badoura in the Garden: Edmund Dulac" [source caption]. In Princess Badoura: A Tale from the Arabian Nights, Laurence Housman. Illustrated by Edmund Dulac, 1913, Hodder & Stoughton. Source scan leaf 9. Lumitheca. /gallery/image/badoura-princess
Source details
Title from the printed caption. Editorial description. Source details from the Library catalogue.
The garden is Dulac's pictorial setting, not a documented Chinese location. Identification follows the printed plate title and Housman's version of the tale.
Sources
From the book
Princess Badoura: A Tale from the Arabian NightsLaurence Housman1913More from this book
The King of China Visits Badoura: Edmund Dulac
Camaralzaman as an Astrologer: Edmund Dulac
Camaralzaman Finds Badoura’s Talisman: Edmund DulacRelated illustrations
Cite this illustration
Edmund Dulac. Princess Badoura in the Garden: Edmund Dulac. Princess Badoura: A Tale from the Arabian Nights. Scan leaf 9. Lumitheca. https://lumitheca.com/gallery/image/badoura-princess