Tito Melema

Tito Melema was the Greek husband of Romola de Bardi, the heroine of George Elliot's novel Romola, set in Renaissance Florence. The story tells of the trials of the virtuous Romola, a devoted daughter of an old blind scholar. Tito Melema, a handsome, but treacherous individual, arrives in Florence having been shipwrecked. He secures his position in society amongst the politicians and scholars, and marries Romola. However Nemesis pursues him in the form of Baldassare, his childhood mentor, who he had robbed and abandoned into slavery. In addition he had hidden from Romola the fact that he is already married with children. Romola's love for her husband turns into contempt and she flees Florence and is left in utter isolation, but is rescued by the discovery of her duty in self-sacrifice. Romola was first published in 1862 as fourteen editions in the Cornhill Magazine with illustrations by Frederic Lord Leighton.

Edward Clifford is best known for his society portraits and occasional religious subjects. The present watercolour is a somewhat rare example of Clifford using a secular and contemporary literary subject.