A Cockney & his Wife going to Wycombe
Original title: A Cockney & his Wife going to Wycombe
kurzbeschreibung
Where much of the etching of the day prettified rural life, this print by James Gillray, made between 1824 and 1827, puts a London couple in the countryside and lets them look thoroughly out of place. The man rides perched on the draught horse while his wife sits in the carriage. Gillray turns the outing into a satirical jab at town visitors who have no idea how the country works.
Description
A pair travelling by horse-drawn carriage: the man has settled himself on the horse's back with a whip in hand, while the woman waits in the carriage, her hair styled in a fashion typical of the period. A dog trails the team. Trees and birds suggest the rural setting, and a strip of text along the bottom of the black-and-white sheet gives the title and a description.
Context
The British artist James Gillray was a celebrated caricaturist whose satirical prints circulated widely. This sheet dates from the 1820s, when industrialisation and urban growth were reshaping Britain. "Cockney" then referred to the London working class, who were widely thought to be hopeless in the countryside. The etching belongs to a series that treats the meeting of town and country with humour.
Impact
Cleanly drawn lines and caricatured figures deliver the joke at once. The rural setting pulls against the urban protagonists, sharpening the comedy further, and the monochrome technique keeps the image clear and lasting in its effect.
Technique
The print was made as an etching, an intaglio process in which the drawing is bitten into a metal plate. Gillray's characteristic style comes through in fine, precise lines. Printed on paper, the full sheet measures roughly 24.2 × 34.4 cm.
AI-generated description text
Source: Metropolitan Museum of Art · Public Domain (CC0 1.0)