Artwork
H Beard Print Collection

H Beard Print Collection is a print by Röder, C.G.. It is held in the collection of the Victoria and Albert Museum. The work is a colour print taken from the sheet music of the opera The Taming of the Shrew, composed by H.
About this work
Overview
The work is a colour print taken from the sheet music of the opera The Taming of the Shrew, composed by H. Goetz. It forms part of the H Beard Print Collection and is attributed to the artist C. G. Röder, illustrating the visual dimension of a musical score.
Subject & Meaning
The image reproduces a page of the opera’s printed music, linking the visual arts to the theatrical and musical performance of Shakespeare’s comedy as adapted by Goetz. By presenting a fragment of the score, the print underscores the collaborative nature of 19th‑century opera production, where visual design and musical notation intersect.
Technique & Style
Executed as a colour print, the piece reproduces the typographic and ornamental details of the original sheet music. Röder’s hand is evident in the careful rendering of the page’s layout, preserving the decorative borders and lettering that accompany the musical notation.
History & Provenance
The print entered the H Beard Print Collection, a private assemblage of graphic works, before being catalogued by the Victoria and Albert Museum. Its provenance traces back to the original publication of Goetz’s opera, situating the image within the broader circulation of 19th‑century musical ephemera.
Context
The Taming of the Shrew was one of several operatic adaptations of Shakespeare’s play in the late 1800s, reflecting a period when composers and publishers frequently produced lavishly illustrated scores for public consumption. Prints such as this served both as promotional material and as collectible art objects.
Artist & collection
Artist
C.G. Röder made 19th-century prints, likely portraits or scenes of daily life, using techniques common before photography took over. In the H Beard Print Collection you’ll find their crisp, black-and-white work showing…










