The degree to which fiction and reality are confused varies among the fandom of Sherlock Holmes. While some readers still retained their awareness for the character’s fictionality, some fans were so obsessive that they went to the extreme and deliberately minimized or ignored Doyle’s role as its creator, treating Holmes as if he was a real person.105 An unprecedented phenomenon in modern literature, Sherlock Holmes is also visually enchanting largely due to Sidney Paget’s remarkable illustrations. Much as Doyle may be a bit unsure about Holmes’ refined outlook at first, he did later acknowledge the artist’s contribution, saying Paget had done his part
“so well that he made a type which the whole English-reading race came to recognize.”106
As the semi-realistic scenes mediate between reality and fiction, through the Strand’s monthly releases Paget’s illustrations gradually came to lay the foundation for much of the Sherlockian iconography.107 It is undeniable that the artist contributed the majority of the sleuth’s famous attributes recognised nowadays. A deerstalker
105 Saler, “‘Clap If You Believe in Sherlock Holmes’: Mass Culture and the Re-Enchantment of Modernity, c. 1890 - c. 1940,” p. 600.
106 Ibid., p. 611.
107 James Montgomery, A Study in Pictures: Being a Trifling Monograph on the Iconography of Sherlock Holmes, Philadelphia: International Print Co., 1954. This 64-pages book is probably the first monograph focusing on the iconography of Sherlock Holmes.
along with an inverness cape and a pipe, these attires have become emblems of Sherlock Holmes in the general public impression.
While most Holmesian studies cites Sidney Paget as the first illustrator to give the legendary detective a deerstalker, such claim is not entirely true. The first time Sherlock Holmes appeared with this specific headgear was on the first page of the weekly paper Bristol Observer for June 7th, 1890.108 Accompanying the serialised chapter VII of The Sign of the Four, the anonymous illustration depicts the duo following Toby the dog on a chase through London suburbs. Here Holmes is shown wearing a deerstalker and an inverness cape, with a rather unfamiliar addition of moustache (fig. 66).
Nevertheless, considering the very limited availability of this image, Paget is still without question the major pioneer who made the hunting hat famous. Out of the whole canon, the deerstalker is never really specified by Doyle, but an “ear-flapped traveling cap” is referenced in “The Adventure of Silver Blaze” (1892), which probably serves as an index for the artist.109 It is possible that Paget filled out the details of such style of dress based on his own experiences, as this type of cap was especially fashionable during the time, and the artist seems to be fond of it on outdoor occasions (fig. 67).110 Coincidentally, there is also a photograph of Joseph Bell, the prime archetype for the character, wearing the same kind of hat and dressed in a tweed cloak (fig. 68).
Vastly exploited in so many advertisements over the last century, Holmes’
pipe as one of his most symbolic attribute raises a more complicated case, for the famous calabash pipe was never Paget’s invention, either.111 According to the canon, Holmes presumably owns three types of pipes: an old briar, an oily black clay one as a “companion of his deepest meditations,” and a long cherry-wood saved for a
108 Leslie Katz, “Sherlock Holmes in Australian Reasons for Judgment or Decision,” in: Social Science Research Network, accessed on April 1st, 2015, p. 28.
http://papers.ssrn.com/sol3/papers.cfm?abstract_id=1337347
109 Doyle, “The Adventure of Silver Blaze,” The Original Illustrated Sherlock Holmes, p. 185.
110 Randall Stock has compiled a detailed list of comparisons between the illustrator’s personal objects and his Homesian illustrations. See, “Sidney Paget Memorabilia and Sherlock Holmes Association Items,” accessed on September 15th, 2014.
http://www.bestofsherlock.com/sidney-paget-memorabilia.htm
111 David Stuart Davies, Starring Sherlock Holmes: A Century of the Master Detective on Screen, London: Titan, 2007, p. 167.
“disputatious” mood. 112 There are in fact no specific descriptions on these pipes’
shapes, only their materials. Never once did Doyle mention a calabash, and the pipe in Paget’s illustrations is always a straight one, be it long or short-stemmed.
The curved, voluminous pipe was first brought into view by the American actor William Gillette (1853-1937) in his stage adaptation Sherlock Holmes in 1899 because a calabash’s deep bend and its gravity would allow the actor to talk around the pipe more easily.113 Or so says the legend. Daniel Stashower, author of Teller of Tales, The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle, points out that the choice would be quite impractical due to its heavy weight, suggesting that the appearance of a flamboyant calabash may first be introduced as an oversized comedy prop for the comedian impersonators during the 1930s and 1940s.114 In fact, Gillette seems to prefer a lighter, bent-stem briar, as shown in the recently recovered silent film Sherlock Holmes (1916) (fig. 69). His portrayal was so influential that the cinematic impersonations afterwards, such as Basil Rathbone (1892-1967), had picked up the curved pipe (fig. 70).
As much as Gillette’s stage performance has played a significant role in the history of Sherlock Holmes on screen, the cinematographic importance of Sidney Paget’s visual presentation is never to be ignored. As the image of Holmes holding a calabash gained immense fame and became ubiquitous, challenges started to appear questioning whether such mainstream is truly accurate. British actor Ian Richardson (1934-2007), the short-lived Sherlock Holmes back in the early 80s, had a small quarrel with his American producer Sy Weintraub on the choice of pipe.115 Though Richardson eventually consented to smoke a meerschaum, his initial refusal implies that the straight pipe holds a certain value of authenticity.
In a profound way Holmes’ paraphernalia reflect different aspects of Sherlock Holmes as a genuine detective. A type of headdress commonly worn in rural areas and often for hunting, the deerstalker can be viewed as a metaphor for the sleuth’s role in the stories, whereas the magnifying glass denotes his shrewdness of
112 For the list of Sherlock Holmes’ pipes mentioned in the canon, see Appendix I.
113 Werner, “Sherlock Holmes, Sidney Paget and the Strand Magazine,” pp. 121–122. For a summary of Sherlock Holmes featured in early cinema, see Nathalie Morris, “Silent Sherlocks: Holmes and Early Cinema,” in: Alex Werner (ed.), Sherlock Holmes: The Man Who Never Lived and Will Never Die, pp. 209–227.
114 Daniel Stashower, Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle, New York: Henry Holt and Company, 1999, p. 253.
115 Davies, p. 115.
observation. In “The Boscombe Valley Mystery” (1891) Watson has given the reader an apt description of Holmes when he is hot upon something suspicious:
Men who had only known the quiet thinker and logician of Baker Street would have failed to recognise him. His face flushed and darkened. His brows were drawn into two hard black lines, while his eyes shone out from beneath them with a steely glitter. His face was bent downward, his shoulders bowed, his lips compressed, and the veins stood out like whipcord in his long, sinewy neck. His nostrils seemed to dilate with a purely animal lust for the chase, and his mind was so absolutely concentrated upon the matter before him that a question or remark fell unheeded upon his ears, or, at the most, only provoked a quick, impatient snarl in reply.116
Like an exciting hunter chasing after his prey, Holmes is unstoppable when he is on the hunt for either the criminals or any clue to solve the mystery (fig. 71).
Another category of Holmesian symbols — namely his pipe, dressing gown and violin — reveals a side of the eccentric detective that is opposite to the aggressiveness displayed above. What these emblematic apparels have in common is that they are all canonically associated with the theme of thinking, and their indisputable presence involves an array of portrayals drawn by Paget for the Strand.
“To smoke. It is quite a three pipe problem,” says Sherlock Holmes curling up in his chair ready for a session of meditation (fig. 72).117 This moment is classic for both Doyle’s witty comment and Paget’s iconic presentation. Intentionally or not, the frame encircling around the perching figure gives the profile view a semi-religious vibe. It is as if Holmes is now bestowed with a halo of smoke and wrapped up in his own bubble of thoughts, and the pipe that hangs from the detective’s mouth has become a totem that signifies a contemplative mood and absolute concentration.
In a similar vein, putting on a dressing gown often suggests a transition into a relaxed mode for Holmes’ brain to work at its best (fig. 73), whereas violin playing or music might allow not only similar functions but also a distraction from physical
116 Doyle, “The Boscombe Valley Mystery,” The Original Illustrated Sherlock Holmes, p. 62.
117 Doyle, “The Red-Headed League,” p. 33. “‘What are you going to do, then?’ I asked. ‘To smoke,’
he answered. ‘It is quite a three pipe problem, and I beg that you won't speak to me for fifty minutes.’
He curled himself up in his chair, with his thin knees drawn up to his hawk-like nose, and there he sat with his eyes closed and his black clay pipe thrusting out like the bill of some strange bird.”
presence (fig. 74).118 To further establish Sherlock Holmes as a potent thinker, Paget is also very clever in picking up specific body languages to invent memorable compositions. Whether picturing Holmes sinking in his favourite armchair, or him hunching forward while sitting on the edge, the artist efficiently employs hand gestures to create certain trademarks for the character. For example, steeple and crossed hands, normally signs of confidence and superiority, are often seen when Holmes is mesmerised in his own universe and could imply a thinking process related with deduction, reflection, or meditation (fig. 75–77).119
Asides from those portraits of the sleuth deep in thought, there is yet another set of pictures which are iconic in their compositions. Portraying Holmes and Watson sitting on their comfy chairs while deep in conversation (fig. 29, 30), these illustrations are variations of the same recurrent motif. To understand the significance of this peculiar type, it is then necessary to first define Doctor Watson’s role in their relationship. While being the detective’s only real friend, John Watson may also be viewed as an important attribute to Sherlock Holmes, since the “good old Watson”
has already become a fixed element in Holmes’ life over the years. In “The Adventure of the Creeping Man” (1923), Watson well explains that the nature of Holmes’
attachment to him in fact resembles a lot to his other habits:
He was a man of habits, narrow and concentrated habits, and I had become one of them. As an institution I was like the violin, the shag tobacco, the old black pipe, the index books, and others perhaps less excusable. When it was a case of active work and a comrade was needed upon whose nerve he could place some reliance, my role was obvious. But apart from this I had uses. I was a whetstone for his mind. I stimulated him. He liked to think aloud in my presence. His remarks could hardly be said to be made to me — many of them would have been as appropriately addressed to his bedstead — but none the
118 Doyle, “The Man with the Twisted Lip,” p. 90. “He took off his coat and waistcoat, put on a large blue dressing gown, and then wandered about the room collecting pillows from his bed, and cushions from the sofa and arm-chairs. With these he constructed a sort of Eastern divan, upon which he perched himself cross-legged, with an ounce of shag tobacco and a box of matches laid out in front of him. In the dim light of the lamp I saw him sitting there, an old brier pipe between his lips, his eyes fixed vacantly upon the corner of the ceiling, the blue smoke curling up from him, silent, motionless, with the light shining upon his strong set aquiline features.”
119 Tonya Reiman, The Yes Factor: Get What You Want. Say What You Mean, New York: Hudson Street Press, 2010, p. 159. “The gesture of touching the finger tips together and pointing up conveys confidence. It is generally used by someone who’s in a position of authority.”
less, having formed the habit, it had become in some way helpful that I should register and interject.120
In the same sense, visually speaking Watson is also like the violin, the tobacco and that old black pipe in Holmes’ hand. It would of course be too much to diminish the good old doctor into a mere object, but this perspective does shed some light on Paget’s repeating presentations of such pattern.
Constituting the readers’ ultimate impression of Doyle’s legendary detective, these two groups of images are perhaps the most memorable and influential ones as the majority of them later became the visual archetypes for many adaptations and appropriations. Deemed as the best Sherlock Holmes in silent cinema, Eille Norwood (1861-1948) studied Paget’s original drawings for visual cues (fig. 78). His personification of the sleuth gained not only popular recognition but also Doyle’s respect. As a token for his admiration, Doyle had gifted Norwood a jazzy dressing gown, an apparel which Norwood later wore in most of the movies.121
Another prominent example would be the television series produced by Michael Cox under Granada Television from 1984 to 1994, featuring Jeremy Brett (1933-1995) as the great detective and David Burke (born 1934) his Doctor Watson.122 Out of so many screen adaptations of Sherlock Holmes, the Granada series are still nowadays hailed by many hard-core fans as the most faithful project to both Doyle’s words and Paget’s images. In their earnest attempt to reproduce Sherlock Holmes and his Victorian London, a reference manual titled The Baker Street File was meticulously compiled to provide precise guidance for the whole cast and crew.123 Iconic scenes were taken from the Strand Magazine and fused into the corresponding episodes in wish to show their fidelity to the original works, and the result was satisfying.
Whether clayed in a plain dressing gown while puffing at his old briar (fig. 79), curling on his favourite armchair in deep thought (fig. 80), or picking up a rose to
120 Doyle, “The Adventure of the Creeping Man,” Sherlock Holmes: The Complete Novels and Stories Volume II, New York: Bantam Books, 2003, p. 653. Davies also highlights this observation in his discussion of Doctor Watson’s role in the stories, see Davies, p. 93.
121 Davies, p. 17.
122 There are four series and forty-one episodes in total: The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes (1984-1985), The Return of Sherlock Holmes (1986-1988), The Case-Book of Sherlock Holmes (1991-1993), The Memoirs of Sherlock Holmes (1994).
123 Davies, p. 123.
appreciate the embellishment it could offer (fig. 81, 82), Brett’s sharp profile and gaunt features mirrored Paget’s portraits of Sherlock Holmes in a strikingly similar fashion, and his subtle delivery has managed to resurrect an eccentric but very likable Holmes. Also a popular reference for screen adaptation, the train carriage scene from
“The Adventure of the Silver Blaze” (1892) was reconstructed with devotion — again, with his index finger tracing the palm of his right hand, Brett presents the audience with an exactly reversed version of the original drawing, paying his tribute to Paget in an intricate manner (fig. 83).
Along with numerous editions and translations in different languages, the fame of Sherlock Holmes extends beyond the English-speaking sphere and far into the other side of the world. Films, television programmes, and animation, adaptations in various forms have flourished worldwide over the past century.124 Likewise, influence of the Paget drawings, especially those aforementioned archetypes, has also become global. They are frequently employed or appropriated either as a “quotation”
to attest validity and reliability, or as a subtle way to pay tribute to the iconic detective.
For example, in the Japanese anime film Case Closed: The Phantom of Baker Street (2002), the Doyle-inspired main character Conan’s idiosyncratic sitting posture and the signature hand gesture display a composite image of Paget’s Sherlock Holmes (fig.
84).125 Another obvious example would be the private detective L from Death Note (2003-2006), whose many character traits and quirky body language are clear dedications to the sleuth (fig. 85).126
The media obsession of Sherlock Holmes reached its peak with Jeremy Brett’s successful portrayal and started to wane afterwards. Although there were still some productions released now and then, none of them made huge hits like their predecessor. It is only during the last decade that the industry has seen a revival of Sherlock Holmes with Guy Ritchie’s movie franchise (fig. 86) and BBC’s modern
124 For an encyclopedic compilation, see Alan Barnes, Sherlock Holmes on Screen: the Complete Film and TV History, London: Reynolds & Hearn, 2004. For chronological studies, see David Stuart Davies, Starring Sherlock Holmes: A Century of the Master Detective on Screen, London: Titan, 2007.
125 With its plots inspired by both Doyle’s Sherlock Holmes and the legend of Jack the Ripper, The Phantom of Baker Street is the sixth Case Closed (also known as Detective Conan) feature film based on the manga of the same name illustrated by Gosho Aoyama, released on April 20th 2002 by Toho Co., Ltd.
126 Death Note is a Japanese manga series illustrated by Takeshi Obata based on the story written by Tsugumi Ohba, published between December 2003 to May 2006.
update Sherlock (fig. 87).127 As Robert Downey Jr. and Benedict Cumberbatch conquer the fandom with their respective versions of Sherlock Holmes, through this reignited fan frenzy around the world Sidney Paget’s illustrations have gradually found their way back to the public’s attention.
The Abominable Bride, the Sherlock holiday special released at the beginning of 2016, brings Holmes and Watson back to the Victorian London in the Christmas of 1895. This New Year episode not only visually reintroduces Paget’s iconic visualisation of Doyle’s characters (fig. 88, 89), but also openly gives out self-conscious remarks on its visual references to both the Strand Magazine and the illustrator (fig. 90). “Oh, blame it on the illustrator. He’s out of control. I’ve had to grow this moustache just so that people would recognise me,” says Doctor Watson to Mrs. Hudson in the opening sequence when the duo returns to 221B Baker Street.
Watson’s comment, despite being critical with some slight witty-cynicism, happens to demonstrate how influential Paget’s illustrations could be to the public imagination of these Sherlock Holmes personae. Whether ostensibly or obscurely, each time the Paget drawings are consulted, the power of these images is reinforced, and thus strengthens the authority of Sidney Paget as one of the most important illustrators for the Sherlock Holmes stories.
127 Guy Ritchie (dir.), Sherlock Holmes, 128 minutes, Warner Bros. Pictures, 2009; Sherlock Holmes: A Game of Shadows, 129 minutes, Warner Bros. Pictures, 2011. Steven Moffat and Mark Gatiss,
Sherlock, BBC, 2010-present.
Conclusion
Arthur Conan Doyle held an ambivalent attitude towards his creation as the fame of Sherlock Holmes was so great that it overshadowed all his efforts on other literary works. Despite his attempt to kill the sleuth off with a single plunge into deep water, Holmes became immortal instead, running away from his control and always coming back to haunt him. Doyle had eventually come to accept this bittersweet relationship with his one and only consulting detective in the world — after all, he is remembered and recognised in the literary history mainly as the creator of Sherlock Holmes.
Arthur Conan Doyle held an ambivalent attitude towards his creation as the fame of Sherlock Holmes was so great that it overshadowed all his efforts on other literary works. Despite his attempt to kill the sleuth off with a single plunge into deep water, Holmes became immortal instead, running away from his control and always coming back to haunt him. Doyle had eventually come to accept this bittersweet relationship with his one and only consulting detective in the world — after all, he is remembered and recognised in the literary history mainly as the creator of Sherlock Holmes.