A man sits backwards in his chair at the counter of an shop as he smiles with pleasure as he spoons his ice from his glace. In the background are drawers and a shelf with jars
Description:
Title from caption below image. and Not in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum. Division I, political and personal satires.
Elegant and affluent customers enjoy ices in a grand room in London's fashionable St. James's. The female server behind the counter is elegantly dressed and looks with ease out of the window. A finely dressed gentleman leans against the counter at right, spooning ice cream into his mouth from a glass he holds in his left hand; his hat, gloves, and stick are carefully arranged on a chair next him. Two women are seated at the left side of the counter, one holding an ice cream glass and spoon. A classical fireplace on the right has additional glasses arranged upon it. A great craze in 18th-century Britain, amongst the wealthy, was ice cream. Establishments such as The Pineapple on Berkeley Square (close by St James’s), owned by Domenico Negri, offered "All Sorts of Ice, Fruits & Creams" (see the elaborate trade card in the British Museum). This print was intended as a companion piece to "Refreshment at St. Giles's" which, in contrast, shows two women and a man being served gin by a female proprietor from a makeshift and run-down bar
Alternative Title:
Refreshment at Saint James's
Description:
Title etched below image., Probably a later state, with remnants of a burnished imprint statement visible beneath title. Publication information inferred from imprint "London, Publish'd June 1st, 1789, by G.T. Stubbs, No. 2 Compton Street, Soho" present on companion print; see British Museum online catalogue, registration no.: 1948,0315.6.36., Companion print to: Refreshment at St. Giles's., and Not in the Catalogue of prints and drawings in the British Museum. Division I, political and personal satires.
Publisher:
G.T. Stubbs
Subject (Topic):
Interiors, Ice cream & ices, Eating & drinking, and Fireplaces
