Cover for sheet music of La Fille du Regiment, an opera in which Jenny Lind perfomed the lead as Marie, a French girl who was raised by a Regiment. The English translation of the title is "The Daughter of the Regiment," the latter being the famous Twenty-First Regiment of Grenadiers. The illustration shows Jenny Lind as Marie standing on a simple plank bridge over a stream which feeds a pond in the background, with a castle in the distance. She wears a costume that blends European folk style with a military look. Marie's garments include a mid-length white skirt with a decorative band near the hem, and a buff color overskirt bunched up toward the waist. Secured at her waist is a wooden canteen, shaped like a small barrel or keg, which identifies her occupation with the Regiment as a vivandiere or cantiniere, who provided food and drink to the soldiers. Her deep red or burgundy color bodice is trimmed with braidwork like a military jacket and is partly covered with a blue cape ornamented in yellow or gold. Her brown hair is parted in the center and drawn to the back with flowers at one side, and she wears a dark blue hat that is flat like a beret. Above her head she waves a small flag or banner with gold fringe, mounted on a spear. The flag reads "VICTOIRE," the French word for victory. Five songs from the opera are listed below the picture, with the price of each one noted. It is not clear if the various pieces were to be purchased one or two at a time, all to be assembled into the complete song book. Published by William Hall and Son, 259 Broadway, New York, in 1850. The color lithograph is by Sarony and Co. of New York City. Jenny Lind (October 6, 1820 - November 2, 1887) was a Swedish opera singer, popularly known as The Swedish Nightingale. The exceptional quality of her voice was recognized when she was young, and she received training at the Royal Dramatic Theatre in Sweden, and the Royal Swedish Academy of Music. She reached high acclaim in Europe, and was especially popular with English audiences prior being engaged by P. T. Barnum to give a concert tour in North America in 1850-1851. Lind, previously unknown in the US, was heavily promoted by Barnum, creating an insatiable demand for concert tickets and the innumerable consumer products that were manufactured with her name or general likeness. "Lindmania" took hold of the popular imagination and continued for decades though Lind's time in America was relatively short. While in America, Lind married her accompanist, Otto Goldschmidt. The couple later settled in England and raised three children. Lind became a professor of singing at the Royal College of Music in London. She is buried at the Great Malvern Cemetery in Malvern, Worcestershire, England.
