Master Burke as Napoleon Bonaparte
Considered a wonder of the stage, and known as the "Irish Roscius," the boy actor Joseph Burke appears here as one of six characters he performed in "The March of Intellect" at the Surrey Theatre, London between 1827 and 1830. This show premiered when Burke was just nine and included dancing, music and various accents. The character shown in this print is the famous French general and emperor, and the others included a child of eight, an Irishman, an Italian violinist, a lawyer and a British seaman. A contemporary writer raved, "he is an immense favorite; in fact he might be termed one of the wonders of the world...The grand climax to the whole, was his personification of Napoleon. His attitudes, the reserve, sudden impulse, hasty strides, and dignity possessed by the above greatest hero in his day, in the whole world, was represented by Master Burke in such a superior style of histrionic art as to completely beggar all description...in so young a child we never saw any thing like so much mind before...he is quite a master of his art, the stage is completely his own" (see 17.3.888-1074 to 17.3.888-1077, and 17.3.888-1079 for the other characters).
Artwork Details
- Title: Master Burke as Napoleon Bonaparte
- Artist: After Thomas Charles Wageman (British, 1787–1868)
- Etcher: (?) Isaac Robert Cruikshank (British, London 1789–1856 London)
- Engraver: (?) Piercy Roberts (British, active 1795–1827)
- Publisher: William Kenneth (British, active 1820s–1830s)
- Subject: Joseph Burke (Irish, Dublin 1818–1902)
- Author: Related dramatist George Macfarren (British, 1788–1843)
- Subject: Napoléon Bonaparte (French, Ajaccio 1769–1821 St. Helena)
- Date: ca. 1827
- Medium: Etching and aquatint, hand-colored
- Dimensions: Plate: 9 15/16 × 6 1/2 in. (25.2 × 16.5 cm)
Sheet: 11 in. × 7 1/2 in. (28 × 19 cm) - Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Harris Brisbane Dick Fund, 1917
- Object Number: 17.3.756-1078
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
More Artwork
Research Resources
The Met provides unparalleled resources for research and welcomes an international community of students and scholars. The Met's Open Access API is where creators and researchers can connect to the The Met collection. Open Access data and public domain images are available for unrestricted commercial and noncommercial use without permission or fee.
To request images under copyright and other restrictions, please use this Image Request form.
Feedback
We continue to research and examine historical and cultural context for objects in The Met collection. If you have comments or questions about this object record, please complete and submit this form. The Museum looks forward to receiving your comments.