Punch Cures the Gout, the Colic, and the 'Tisick
published July 13, 1799
Medium
Hand-colored etching with engraving on ivory wove paper
Dimensions
Image: 25.8 × 34 cm (10 3/16 × 13 7/16 in.); Plate: 26.2 × 36.4 cm (10 3/8 × 14 3/8 in.); Sheet: 28.8 × 37.7 cm (11 3/8 × 14 7/8 in.)
Classification
etching
Department
Prints and Drawings
Museum
Art Institute of Chicago
Accession Number
61470
Art Historical Context
**Punch Cures the G, the Colic, and the 'Tisick** is a delightfully satirical hand-colored etching by James Gillray, the master caricaturist of Georgian Britain, published on July13, 1799. Measuring about 26 x 36 cm on ivory wove, this print exemplifies Gillray's razor-sharp wit, poking fun at the era's obsession with medicinal cures through the promotion of "Punch"—a popular rum-based cocktail—as a miracle remedy for gout, colic, and "tisick" (an old term for tuberculosis). Gillray, a pioneer of political and social satire, worked during a time of political upheaval in Britain, including the...