These and other works exemplify the expressive qualities of Pre-Raphaelite art brought to their zenith in Burne-Jones's Arthurian paintings and tapestries: the dreamlike sense of dim recollections viewed behind closed eyes, of erotic yearning conveyed through powerful silence.

WSJ: Victorian Avant-Garde | Pre-Raphaelites: Victorian Art and Design | National Gallery of Art | By Barrymore Laurence Scherer