For many horror fans, the words “Frankenstein’s Monster” conjure up vivid images from the golden age of Hollywood, but a rare image of the character – due to go on auction this week – suggests early interpretations of the creature were a lot different to current perceptions.
First created by Mary Shelley in her groundbreaking 1818 novel, Frankenstein’s Monster has become a cultural institution in the horror genre, having been made famous on screen by Boris Karloff in the 1931 movie adaptation.
Although other early versions of Frankenstein had been made before Karloff took on the role, the make-up and costume – comprised of a square head, dark eyes, clunky boots and bolts through his neck – would come to define the image of the character for decades to come.
Numerous reimaginings of a patchwork human being brought to life by a mad scientist have come and gone since, from Johnny Depp as Edward Scissorhands to Emma Stone’s Oscar-winning performance in Poor Things, but few will have ever seen a version of the Monster with a long curly mane of hair.
That’s at least what audiences in 1826 were greeted with when they went to see Henry Milner’s Frankenstein; or, The Man and the Monster! A Peculiar Romantic Melo-Dramatic Pantomimic Spectacle, in Two Acts.
The play was first performed at the Royal Cobourg Theatre, now better known as The Old Vic, with Mr. O. Smith as the Monster. An engraved frontispiece - reportedly the first-ever illustration of Frankenstein’s Monster – shows a muscular Smith wearing what can be best described as a toga and sporting a long head of curly locks, with practically none of the tropes that we now associate with the character.
To their credit, Shelley did describe the Monster as having “lustrous black, and flowing” hair but the clothing is noticeably different from the dishevelled garments that the character wears in the novel.
The illustration, which is preceded only by the first two editions of Shelley's novel and appears five years before her third edition, is set to go on sale at Forum Auctions this week (27 March) and is expected to fetch between £1,5000 and £2,000.
In a statement given to The Independent, Forum Auctions said: “This edition is an important landmark in being the first depiction of Frankenstein though, much like the famous monster, it shows how quickly the interpretations of The Monster escaped the confines of its creator’s original conception.
“The actor depicted here, Mr Smith, has long flowing hair which chimes quite precisely the Shelley’s description though his classical dress and looks are very different from the original. Early editions of Frankenstein and significant works of horror in general are tremendously popular at the moment and titles like this always generate some interest.”
The lot will go on sale on 27 March. To learn more visit Forum Auctions.
