1-148-859 - Art Media/Heritage Images

Costume design for Monostatos, 1913. Monostatos, a Moor in the service of Sarastro, the High Priest of Isis and Osiris. A character in The Magic Flute (Die Zauberflote), the opera by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791) with libretto by Emanuel Schikaneder (1751-1812) which was first produced in Vienna in 1791. The plot has overtones of Freemasonry. Some say the Queen of the Night is based on the Empress Maria Theresa (1717-1780). Design for a 1913 production at the Paris Opera. From the Bibliotheque Nationale, Paris.