Pull Devil, Pull Baker!
published April 30, 1819
Medium
Hand-colored engraving on paper
Dimensions
Image: 20.5 × 32.7 cm (8 1/8 × 12 7/8 in.); Sheet, cut to platemark: 24 × 34 cm (9 1/2 × 13 7/16 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
89930
Art Historical Context
"Pull Devil, Pull Baker is a lively hand-colored etching by George Cruiksh, a master of British caricature, published on April 30, 1819. Measuring about 8 by 13 inches, this print exemplifies the satirical engravings that flooded Regency London, poking fun at politics, society, and human folly. Cruikshank, known for his sharp wit and intricate line work, often collaborated with publishers like George Humphrey to produce affordable, colorful commentary that reached wide audiences. The title evokes a chaotic tug-of-war, a popular motif in 1819 amid Britain's post-Napoleonic tensions—economic ha...
About the Artist
George Cruikshank · 1792–1878
George Cruikshank (1792–1878) was born in London on 27 September 1792, the son of Scottish caricaturist Isaac Cruikshank and Mary MacNaughton. His older brother, Isaac Robert Cruikshank, was also a caricaturist and illustrator, while his sister Eliza worked as a designer. From a young age, Cruikshank assisted his father in the studio, contributing titles, backgrounds, and lettering to cartoons by ...