John William Godward R.B.A. 1861-1922

Crytilla is among the most beautiful of Godward's single-figure compositions, depicting a striking model posed against a wall of marble selecting a violet anemone from a bunch she holds at her breast. Her robes are the colour of ripe peaches, held in place with pearl buttons and scarlet ribbons and with a deep plum stola tied around her waist. This costume combined with a bandeaux tied in the hair and sometimes gold bracelets or necklaces, was the usual costume of the Godward maiden, the same type of costume which the ladies of Kensington and St John's Wood wore to the fashionable costumed soireés of the time.

The features of the lovely dark-haired model who is the subject of Crytilla appear in many of Godward's paintings of this period when he was settled at his Fulham Road Studio in Kensington. She appears in The Tambourine Girl of 1906, Ismenia of 1908, A Grecian Girl of 1908 and Bellezza Pompeiana of 1909. Her name is not known but it is likely that, like virtually all of Godward's models, she was a professional and may have been introduced to Godward by a fellow artist. Other models such as Ethel Warwick, Florrie Bird and the Pettigrew sisters who posed for Godward in the 1890s were very well known models who made their reputations through artist's recommending their services.

The owner of Crytilla had seen and admired the painting when it had been exhibited at the New Gallery in 1908 as Godward's last exhibit. Keen to purchase the picture he wrote to Godward on the 10th of June that year; 'I will hold to my offer of 200 guineas for your picture, but I think that I must stipulate that I ought to have an answer one way or the other this week' (letter in the collection of Gilbert Milo-Turner, quoted in Vern Swanson, John William Godward; The Eclipse of Classicism, 1997, pg. 220). The collector wrote again to Godward on the 16th of June 1908 to obtain clarification on the title of the painting; 'You have not answered my question as to how you came to select the name of Crytilla. Perhaps you would kindly let me know.' Godward had selected the names of classical women from history or mythology to emphasise the subject of ancient beauty and romance. However the names should not be regarded too literally and although Crytilla is a name which appears in a play by Eurypides, Godward's painting is a depiction of Classical beauty and not a particular classical heroine. 

Crytilla was one of the first paintings sold to Eugene Cremetti of Cremetti & Son who aquired Thomas McLean's gallery at number 7 Haymarket in the spring of 1908. Cremetti paid Godward £25 for the copyright of Crytilla a welcome addition to Godward's revenue. Two prints of the painting were made, a large black and white print later in 1908 and a smaller colour print in 1910. Until recently the appearance of Crytilla was only known from Cremetti's prints until its rediscovery and it is reproduced here for the first time.

A study for this picture which had belonged to the art dealer Richard Howarth of Blackburn, is listed in Vern Swanson's book as Violets: A Reverie (study) and a fake version of this painting is also known. The study is said to be a pendant to Reverie (study) of 1908 and it is therefore likely that the the finished version of Reverie which is listed as unlocated in Mr Swanson's book, was a pendant to Crytilla.