"Of all the notable figures from the world of Victorian art and literature, Dante Gabriel Rossetti is one of the most complex," maintained Jan Marsh in Dante Gabriel Rossetti: Painter and Poet. Marsh noted the dualities inherent in the man: his "Anglo-Italian identity," his fame as both painter and poet, and his escape into a medieval past while leading an avant-garde art movement known as the Pre-Raphaelites. "His paintings and poetry, fluctuating in popularity and critical esteem, arouse comparably opposing emotions," March continued. Rossetti created, almost single-handedly, the taste for lithe, long-necked beauties in his paintings of his sister, Christina, and other women, including his wife. These "iconic images of loose-haired sirens," as Marsh described the paintings, can be seen in museums and in advertising; his best known paintings include "Beata Beatrix" and "Monna Vanna." An innovative writer, Rossetti's most famous poems are "The Blessed Damozel," "Sister Helen...