Blank; verso: Male Left Leg, for "The Tree of Forgiveness" c. 19th century

Curator: This delicate pencil drawing, "Male Left Leg, for 'The Tree of Forgiveness'" by Edward Burne-Jones, gives me a jolt. It's a disembodied leg, quite literally hanging there. What does it evoke for you? Editor: It feels almost… sculptural? Like a fragment from antiquity, unearthed, weathered, yet retaining a certain grace in its form. It’s a study, so it lacks the polish of a finished work, but that raw quality lends it an immediacy, don't you think? Curator: Absolutely. And knowing Burne-Jones, steeped in classical mythology, it makes you wonder what character this leg might belong to, which story, what's the symbolism of singling out a limb like this? It makes me ponder the Pre-Raphaelite interest in symbolism. Editor: Right, and the "Tree of Forgiveness" context adds a layer. Perhaps a reference to a journey, a penance, or a sacrifice requiring physical endurance? It's interesting how a single, incomplete form can contain so many potential narratives. Curator: It does highlight, if you think about it, how art is a language, with its own grammar, its own potential for subtle or overt storytelling, doesn’t it? Editor: It certainly does. I'm left feeling like I've just glimpsed a secret, a fragment of a forgotten myth.