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Popular Epithalamium on the Marriage of the Prince of Wales

Figure descriptions
Illustrated poem title in hand-drawn lettering. “POPULAR EPITHALAMIUM” is written on a curved banner and is proceeded by a small, decorative rose. The words “on the” appear in the space below: “on” and “he” are both written on small hearts and a cross between the hearts serves as the letter “t”. There are symmetrical floral arrangements on either side of the hearts. The hearts, the cross, and the flowers are all superimposed onto a white fleuron shape, which stands before a brick wall. The remainder of the poem title, “Marriage of the Prince of Wales”, appears below and is followed by a small decorative milestone. The “M” in “Marriage” is decorated with dots in a vegetal pattern. 1/4 page.
Multipart illustration descends the full length of the poem page, to the left of the poem text. At the top, there is a star-shaped compass with ten points. There is a small crown below the compass. Below the crown, there is a crest with three feathers. A winged cherub appears below the crest, holding a plate that reads “ALBERT.E”. Ribbons extend from either side of the plate, following the curve of the cherubs wings. The ribbon on the left reads “IGN”; the ribbon on the right reads “DIEN”. There are crosses on both ribbons. Next, there is a depiction of a classical warrior in a sail boat. The bow of the boat is shaped like a swan, and there is a heart on the sail. A single star shines in the sky. This image is contained within a three-part, decorative, circular border: the thick outer border is composed of waves. A winged cherub with a heart-shaped necklace appears below the circular border. The cherub holds a plate that reads “ALEXANDRA”. Ribbons extend from the horizontal extremities of plate, and then descend the page, ending in a tangled bow. There is a heart with the letter “L” contained within the bow. There is a small crown directly below the plate. Below the crown, there is a crest with three lions and eight hearts. The crest is superimposed onto the descending ribbons. 1/3 page.
Inhabited initial letter “S” from the poem’s first word, “SHE”. The poem’s first two words, “SHE COMES;” are written in enlarged hand-drawn lettering, but only the initial letter is inhabited. It is contained within a double-ruled rectangular border and inhabited by two creatures resembling dolphins. Behind the inhabited initial, there is the striped handle of a sceptre. The sceptre runs the whole length of the poem page, to the right of the previous illustration. It ends in a point at the bottom and a three-pronged fork at the top. 1/8 page.
Multipart illustration descends 2/3 of the length of the poem page, to the right of the poem text. At the top, two bare breasted angels pose back-to-back. The angel on the left side stands upright. She holds a miniature building in her outstretched right hand and a laurel branch in her left hand. She tucks a sceptre under her left arms: two creatures with snakes’ bodies and birds’ heads are wrapped around the sceptre. The angel on the right side is slumped over; her hair hangs limp over her face. She holds a miniature building in her outstretched left hand and a sword in her right hand. “WAR” is engraved on the sword’s blade and “WANT” is engraved on the sheath. The sun shines between the angels wings, encapsulating the phrase “TREU UND FEST”. Below the angels, there is a heart-shaped crest decorated with the intertwined letters “V” and “A”. Below the crest, a ribbon is decorated with the phrase, “Peach & Plenty”, and the dates “1850” and “1861”. An illustrated caption appears below the ribbon in hand-drawn Gothic lettering. The first word, “GOD”, is decorated and the initial letter “G” is contained within a rectangular border. The caption reads, “GOD has created man imperfect, & left him with many wants, as it were to stimulate each to individual exertion, & to make all feel that it is only by united exertions & combined action that these imperfections can be supplied, & these wants satisfied. This presupposes reliance & confidence in each other.’ First Speech of H. R. H. THE PRINCE CONSORT. May. 1848.” The caption is framed on three sides by curved and curly lines.
A portrait of a woman (left) and a portrait of a man (right) are contained within two overlapping circular frames. In the area of overlap at the centre, three feathers ascend from the centre of a crown. Below the crown, the phrase “∞ ICH DIEN” appears on a curled banner. Flowers, fleurons, leaves, and foliates emerge from the top-left corner of the frame on the left, and from the top-right corner of the frame on the right. In the top right, a heart-shaped plate emerges from among the vegetals. There are two small hearts within the larger heart: they overlap at the centre and both contain the letter “A”. There are curved and curly lines adjacent to this illustration on both sides. 1/4 page.
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