'Dead Together! All are Dead!': An illustration to 'Tristan und Isolde'

Byam Shaw was commissioned to produce 24 colour illustrations for the 1908 publication of The Operas of Wagner: Their Plots, Music and History, with the present watercolour used for Act III of the opera Tristan und Isolde.

First performed in 1865, Wagner's opera tells the story of the medieval romantic legend of Tristan, Knight of Cornwall, and Isolde, Princess of Ireland. The legend begins with Tristan escorting Isolde to Cornwall, where she is to marry King Marke. During the trip, Isolde falls in love with Tristan with both characters ingesting a love potion concocted by the princess. Their love affair continues until a trap is laid by the King's servant, Melot, in which the pair are caught and confronted by the King. The pair are separated, with Tristan wounded by a self-inflicted strike from Melot's sword. The present illustration depicts the closing scenes of the story, where the pair are reunited, only for Tristan to die in Isolde's arms. Isolde is overcome with grief and follows Tristan into death, just as King Marke arrives. He has learnt of the love potion and has come to unite Isolde and Tristan and surrender his own claim to her.