Frontispiece, Revising for the Second Edition (Picturesque Beauties of Boswell, Part the Second)
Medium
Etching
Dimensions
Sheet: 10 in. × 10 5/8 in. (25.4 × 27 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
Gift of Georgiana W. Sargent, in memory of John Osborne Sargent, 1924
Accession Number
24.63.2057
Rights
Public Domain
Tags
Art Historical Context
This etching, titled *Frontispiece, Revis for the Second Edition (que Beauties of Bos, Part the Second)* dates to June 15, 1786, and captures the sharp wit of late 18th-century British satire. Created by a collaborative team including renowned caricaturists Thomas Rowlandson and Samuel Collings with contributions linked to figures like James Boswell—the famed biographer of Samuel Johnson—and his son Alexander Boswell, Lord Auchinleck, it served as the frontispiece for a parody publication mocking Boswell's literary endeavors. Other names, such as Alexander Macdonald, 1st Baron Macdonald of Slate, and Elizabeth Jackson, suggest a satirical ensemble poking fun at literary and social circles. Printed on a modest 10 × 10⅝-inch sheet, the work exemplifies the etching technique popular for affordable, widely circulated prints during the Georgian era. Rowlandson and Collings masterfully employed exaggerated features and humorous scenarios to lampoon the "revision" process, blending caricature with social commentary on authorship and pretension. As a product of London's vibrant print culture, it reflects how satire targeted intellectuals like Boswell, turning personal quirks into public amusement. Housed in the Metropolitan Museum of Art's Drawings and Prints department, this piece highlights the era's cultural obsession with caricature, offering visitors a playful glimpse into the rivalries and laughs of Enlightenment literary life.
About the Artist
Alexander Macdonald , 1st Baron Macdonald of Slate|Thomas Rowlandson|James Boswell|Alexander Boswell, Lord Auchinleck|Samuel Collings|Elizabeth Jackson (British|British|British|Scottish|British, Scottish|British) · 1757 |1707 |1784 |1740 |1740 |1785 –1827 |1782 |1795 |1795 |1795 |1787
British, London 1757–1827 London|British, Auchinleck 1707–1782 Edinburgh|British, active 1784–95|Scottish, ca. 1745–1795|British, Edinburgh, Scotland 1740–1795 London|British, active 1785–87