The head and shoulders of Sarah Bernhardt wearing lilies in her fair hair and an embroidered tunic, framed by a pale blue halo inscribed with her name and surrounded by golden stars.

Sarah Bernhardt (13 works)

Poster for 'Lorenzaccio' (1896)

Sarah Bernhardt played the male character of Lorenzo de' Medici in Alfred de Musset's Romantic tragedy of 1834.

Set in 16th-century Florence, the plot tells of how Lorenzo de' Medici kills Florence's tyrant, Alessandro de' Medici, depicted by Mucha as a snaring dragon menacing the coat of arms of the city of Florence in the upper part of the poster. Bernhardt, portrayed face on, contemplates the murder, symbolised by a dagger piercing the tyrannous dragon at the foot of the poster. The background is reminiscent of Florentine velvet.