"Two heads emerge from the highly-polished boots of their respective owners, which face each other. They are finished portraits of Skeffington and Montagu Mathew, inseparables, see BMSat 9699. Skeffington's boot (left) is a tasselled Hessian; its pointed toe rests on the foot of Mathew's spurred top-boot. Both wear round hats of slightly differing shapes. Skeffington's dark hair is short, falling over his forehead; he has a large whisker. Mathew's fair hair is long and powdered, and tied by a ribbon at the tips; he has a small whisker. Round the two boots are grouped blacking materials. A large open book (left) is 'Essay on Blacking'; by it are bottles labelled 'Mr Broomhills Recipe' and 'The Princes Recipe', and a mixing-pot. Two volumes (right) are 'Chemistry'; on them are bottles labelled 'Pine Apple' and 'Spirit of Salt'. There are also two brushes, a polishing pad, a cake of 'Holdsworth's' blacking, and a broken bottle of 'Royal Blacking'."--British Museum online catalogue
Description:
Title etched below image., Printmaker from British Museum catalogue., Mounted to 56 x 37 cm., and Collector's annotations on mount.
Publisher:
Publish'd March 10th, 1801, by H. Humphrey, 27 St. James's Street
Subject (Name):
Skeffington, Lumley St. George, Sir, 1771-1850 and Mathew, Montague James, 1773-1819
"A handsome and fashionable young man rides a spirited horse in profile to the left over a pavement of small stones. He is round-shouldered and rides with hands and feet thrust forward, a cane resting on his right shoulder."--British Museum online catalogue
Alternative Title:
How to ride with elegance through the streets
Description:
Title etched above image., Two lines of quoted verse below title: "Tis not in mortals to command success, "Arrah but we'll do more, Sempronius, we'll deserve it.", Sheet trimmed within plate mark., and Temporary local subject terms: Horsemanship -- Literature: quotation from Joseph Addison's Cato, I.2.
Publisher:
Publish'd April 8th, 1800, by H. Humphrey, 27 St. James's Street, London
"Three handsome young men, stooping slightly, walk languidly arm-in-arm along a pavement in profile to the left. They have a strong family resemblance, with variations in profile and in the size of their whiskers. They are dressed alike, except for differently curving hat-brims, in tail-coats with sleeves gathered at the shoulder, but without the clumsy bulk of the Jean-de-Bry, cf. BMSat 9425, stocks resembling those worn by Skeffington, see BMSat 9557, but less extravagantly swathed, frilled shirts, double-breasted outer waitcoats, riding-breeches, and boots with deep tops. Their long powdered hair is tied, and their coats are thickly frosted with powder, cf. BMSat 8190. They do not carry canes."--British Museum online catalogue
Description:
Title etched below image., Printmaker from British Museum catalogue., Sheet trimmed to plate mark., and Mounted to 38 x 26 cm.
Publisher:
Pubd. June 16th, 1803, by H. Humphrey, 27 St. James's Street