2-880-266 - Shirley Markham Collection/Heritage Images

Frontispiece and Titlepage for Venus and Tannhauser, 1895. 'The story of Venus and Tannhäuser, in which is set forth an exact account of the manner of state held by Madam Venus, Goddess and Meretrix, under the famous Hörselberg, and containing the adventures of Tannhäuser in that place, his repentance, his journeying to Rome, and return to the loving mountain. By Aubrey Beardsley'. Illustration for "Under the Hill", an unfinished erotic novel by Beardsley based on the legend of Tannhäuser. The first parts were published in "The Savoy", and later issued in book form by Leonard Smithers. The original manuscript was published in 1907, titled "The Story of Venus and Tannhäuser". From "The Best of Beardsley" edited by R. A. Walker, [The Bodley Head, London, 1948]