The Celebrated Sam House, of Wardour Street, London.

• Price: $75.00
  

  SKU: 102955

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• ARTIST:

• MEDIUM: Etching & Engraving,

  DATE: c. 1784

• EDITION SIZE: Paper size 8 5/8 x 5 1/2" ( 21.9 x 13.9 cm)

• DESCRIPTION: This anonymous etching and engraving, produced between 1781 and 1784, depicts Samuel House, a well-known Westminster publican and fervent supporter of Charles James Fox during the turbulent 1784 general election. In this caricature, House is shown full-length, bald and stout, striding to the right with a tankard of ale raised in one hand and his other arm gesturing emphatically ahead, his stockings slipping down—a nod to his famously eccentric appearance. Though of modest background, House played a significant political role as a plebeian figurehead of the Foxite campaign, financing ale for voters at his own expense and using his tavern, the Intrepid Fox, as a hub for pro-Fox activity. The image captures not only his physical character but also the spirit of the moment—an era in which political loyalty, class identity, and public image collided in the streets of Westminster. Often lampooned by anti-Foxite artists, House became a powerful, if ambivalent, symbol of grassroots political enthusiasm, plebeian agency, and electoral spectacle.

• ADDITIONAL INFO: This piece is in a 6.5 x 9 inch archival mylar for handling.

• CONDITION: Good condition save for two lines above Sam's head. Accompanying text behind the image.

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• CATEGORIES: 18th-19th Century Subjects , Caricatures and Satirical , English Satire & Caricatures