File:A block for the wigs - or, the new state whirligig. (BM 1851,0901.142 1).jpg
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Summary
A block for the wigs - or, the new state whirligig. ( ) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Artist |
Print made by: James Gillray
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Title |
A block for the wigs - or, the new state whirligig. |
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Description |
English: A merry-go-round in violent action, ministers seated on the horses, &c, fixed on a circular platform which is supported on a short central beam. This beam is held in place by three blocks or wedges inscribed "Treasury", "Navy", "Army". In the centre of the platform, on a tall pedestal, a continuation of the supporting beam, is a bust of the king in profile, the features blank, the head bald, a bob-wig being supported on a pole above his head; from this pole floats a ragged British flag. The king, the centre of the structure, is represented as a wig-block, or a block for the Whigs. The foremost figure on the merry-go-round on the extreme right is Fox, seated in a chair, in back view, with a fox's head and brush; he holds up a large money-bag in his left hand, looking over his shoulder at his followers with a jeering expression; his large brush flies out behind him. Behind him, riding a galloping horse whose legs are cut off at the knees, is North, his wig flying from his head with the violence of the motion. [A great meeting of the Electors of Westminster on 6 March was repeatedly interrupted by a heckler asking "How long has Lord North been a Whig?" 'Remembrancer', 1783, i, 211] Behind him is Burke, on a similar horse, dressed as a Jesuit, wearing a large biretta as in BMSat 6205. He is in profile to the right, wearing spectacles, and fading from a book he holds open before him, inscribed "Sublime & Beautiful" (in allusion to his "Philosophical Enquiry ...", 1756). His leg is that of a skeleton, probably to indicate the character of his policy of economical reform. Behind Burke is Keppel, in naval uniform, riding on an ass with its legs folded beneath it. He is saying "Dam'd rough Sailing this, I shall never be able to keep my Seat till the 27th July", another allusion to the battle of Ushant. Cf. BMSat 5992, &c. Behind Keppel, seated on a throne inscribed "President", full-face and smiling, is a man with bare knees, short turban, breeches, and tartan stockings. From the crown which decorates the back of his throne hang two large thistles. He wears the ribbon of an order, and represents Scottish influence personified possibly in Bute, probably in Lord Stormont, who was President of the Privy Council in the Coalition Ministry and K.T. The rim of the merry-go-round opposite Keppel, Burke, and North respectively is inscribed "Balaam, Œconomy, Secretary."
Etching |
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Depicted people | Representation of: Edmund Burke | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Date |
1783 date QS:P571,+1783-00-00T00:00:00Z/9 |
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Medium | paper | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Dimensions |
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Collection |
institution QS:P195,Q6373 |
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Current location |
Prints and Drawings |
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Accession number |
1851,0901.142 |
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Notes |
(Description and comment from M.Dorothy George, 'Catalogue of Political and Personal Satires in the British Museum', V, 1935) Grego, 'Gillray', p. 48. |
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Source/Photographer | https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1851-0901-142 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Permission (Reusing this file) |
© The Trustees of the British Museum, released as CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 | |||||||||||||||||||||||
Other versions |
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Licensing
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File history
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Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
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current | 06:15, 11 May 2020 | 1,600 × 1,187 (609 KB) | Copyfraud | British Museum public domain uploads (Copyfraud/BM) Satirical prints in the British Museum 1783 image 2 of 2 #4,800/12,043 |
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Orientation | Normal |
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Horizontal resolution | 300 dpi |
Vertical resolution | 300 dpi |
Software used | Adobe Photoshop Elements 2.0 |
File change date and time | 12:13, 6 July 2006 |
Color space | Uncalibrated |