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OPEN CLASSIC CINEMA · 1140

The Pillar of Fire

18991 minFrance
Fantasy

Synopsis

A devil kindles a fire, and a woman rises from a giant pan in flowing white robes. Her dance makes the fabric resemble moving flames before she disappears in a burst of fire. The brief attraction turns a theatrical dance into a supernatural apparition.

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Video edition
Wikimedia Commons
Original language
No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: not identified.
This copy runs
1:04
Subtitles
No subtitle track in this language

No spoken dialogue. Intertitles: not identified. No subtitle track in this language.

Languages and subtitles

No subtitle track in this language

Wikimedia Commons · Georges Méliès · Public domain

Cast

DirectorsGeorges Méliès

Inspirations

Méliès uses the image of Ayesha standing in fire from H. Rider Haggard's She, rather than adapting the whole novel. Hand coloring contributes to the surviving print's fiery effect.

Sources and availability

General references identify the work and its copy. A reference beside an editorial section is linked to the claims checked in that section.

Wikipedia — film referenceWikidata — film identity and credits

Work catalogued as public domain in the United States.

The public-domain references concern the original films in the United States. Rights can differ for other countries, editions, restorations, music or translations. Sources are listed on each film page.

Availability checked on September 15, 2026.

Photograph credit

Photographs cropped, resized and optimized as WebP, displayed in monochrome.

  • Georges Méliès — Georges Méliès; Publicity materials for an exhibition at La Caixa Foundation: http://press.lacaixa.es/socialprojects/exhibiton-georges-melies-magic-of-cinema-caixaforum-barcelona-eng__816-c-17952__.html · Public domain
  • Jeanne d'Alcy — Léopold-Émile Reutlinger; DALCY_SIP. 947. Photo Reutlinger · Public domain

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