Broad Grins, or a Black Joke
June 4, 1812
Medium
Hand-colored etching
Dimensions
Sheet: 13 9/16 × 9 1/2 in. (34.4 × 24.1 cm)
Classification
Prints
Department
Drawings and Prints
Museum
Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, NY
Credit
The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959
Accession Number
59.533.1960
Tags
Art Historical Context
Step into the witty world of Regency-era satire *Broad Grins, or Black Joke*, a hand-colored etching created by renowned caricaturist Thomas Rowlandson published by Thomas Tegg June 4, 1812—likely coinciding with King George III's birthday celebrations. 13 9/16 × 9 1/2 inches, this print exemplifies the booming British caricature market, where affordable, vividly colored etchings poked fun at society, politics, and human folly. Rowlandson, a master of exaggerated, humorous vignettes, belonged to the golden age of satirical printmaking in early 19th-century London. Hand-coloring, applied by sk...