State of the English Nation

Publisher W. M. Jackson British
August 1, 1778
Not on view
This print copies one first published in the Westminster Magazine on March 1, 1778 as "A Picturesque View of the State of the Nation." Explanatory text is now in French and the imagery includes a cow (English commerce), whose horns are being sawn off by a Native American (the American Congress), and milked by a Dutchman who gives shares to a Frenchman and a Spaniard. The British lion sleeps while a Free Englishman wrings his hands. In the background General William Howe and Admiral Richard Howe sit near Philadelphia, with the latter's flag ship "The Eagle," beached and unready for action.

Artwork Details

Object Information
  • Title: State of the English Nation
  • Artist: Anonymous, British, 18th century
  • Publisher: W. M. Jackson (London)
  • Date: August 1, 1778
  • Medium: Etching and engraving
  • Dimensions: plate: 7 11/16 x 10 5/16 in. (19.6 x 26.2 cm)
    sheet: 9 5/8 x 12 1/2 in. (24.5 x 31.8 cm)
  • Classification: Prints
  • Credit Line: Gift of William H. Huntington, 1883
  • Object Number: 83.2.921
  • Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints

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