File:The wise men of Gotham and their goose (BM 1978,0624.20).jpg

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Summary

The wise men of Gotham and their goose   (Wikidata search (Cirrus search) Wikidata query (SPARQL)  Create new Wikidata item based on this file)
Title
The wise men of Gotham and their goose
Description
English: Ministers and others grouped round a table on which lies a goose which Bute holds down by the neck as he raises his broadsword to kill the bird. Bute (right), in profile to the left, wears Highland dress and the Garter ribbon; the bird has a small chain round its neck. In the foreground (left) a fat bishop leans back in an arm-chair watching intently: he is probably Markham, Archbishop of York, see BMSat 5958, &c. Seven other spectators are poorly characterized: one wearing a ribbon and star leaning over the table may be intended for the king or North but resembles neither. A judge leaning on the bishop's chair may be Mansfield, but his profile is almost concave and has more resemblance to Bathurst. Two others wear legal robes, one is perhaps Wedderburn. A profile head on the extreme left resembles Sandwich. Germain is probably one of the other two. A tenth man (left) is walking to the left holding up a large basket full of eggs. On the ground (left) is a map of "North America" which is being befouled by a dog; on the right. are two bags, one inscribed "Taxes" is disgorging eggs. On the wall which forms a background is a picture of the British lion asleep, flanked by two framed inscriptions on which are verses (30 ll.) which explain the print, beginning,



"In Gotham once the Story goes
A lot of Wise-acres arose . . ."

Their most prized possession was a goose (the colonies),

"A Rara Avis to behold
Who laid each Day an Egg of Gold
This made them grow immensely rich
Gave them an Avaritious Itch, . . ."
[Walpole wrote to Mann, 16 June 1779, "we killed the goose that laid a golden egg a day" referring to trade, not to taxes. 'Letters', x. 427.]

In order to make the bird lay two eggs instead of one:

"About her Neck they put a chain,
And more their Folly to compleat
They Stampt upon her Wings & Feet
But this had no Effect at all,
Yet made her struggle, flutter, squall,
And do what every Goose would do
That had her liberty in view
When one of more distinguish'd Note
Cry'd D------n her, let us cut her Throat,
They did, but not an Egg was found
But Blood came pouring from ye Wound." 16 February 1776


Mezzotint with hand-colouring
Depicted people Portrait of: John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute
Date 1776
date QS:P571,+1776-00-00T00:00:00Z/9
Medium paper
Dimensions
Height: 363 millimetres
Width: 258 millimetres
institution QS:P195,Q6373
Current location
Prints and Drawings
Accession number
1978,0624.20
Notes

(Description and comment from M.Dorothy George, 'Catalogue of Political and Personal Satires in the British Museum', V, 1935) One of a number of satires attributing the measures against the Colonies to Bute, see BMSat 5289, &c. For other references to the Stamp Act see BMSat 5487, &c. Cf. BMSat 5578.

(Supplementary information)

An impression of this print was catalogued by Dorothy George from a reproduction under 1776 (her p.216, but without a number). See her entry for a full description.
Source/Photographer https://www.britishmuseum.org/collection/object/P_1978-0624-20
Permission
(Reusing this file)		 © The Trustees of the British Museum, released as CC BY-NC-SA 4.0

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Date/TimeThumbnailDimensionsUserComment
current02:23, 9 May 2020Thumbnail for version as of 02:23, 9 May 20201,124 × 1,600 (295 KB)CopyfraudBritish Museum public domain uploads (Copyfraud/BM) Satirical prints in the British Museum 1776 #1,201/12,043

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