Prints and Drawings Room
View by appointment- Artist
- Sir Nathaniel Dance-Holland 1735–1811
- Medium
- Graphite, watercolour and ink on paper
- Dimensions
- Support: 172 × 136 mm
frame (Half Royal): 437 × 310 × 25 mm - Collection
- Tate
- Acquisition
- Purchased as part of the Oppé Collection with assistance from the National Lottery through the Heritage Lottery Fund 1996
- Reference
- T08282
Display caption
This little drawing shows three portly
men squeezed into drinking vessels,
with cherries suspended above their heads. As Dance's inscription indicates, this is a satirical reference to the popular children's game, 'Bob-Cherry'. This was one of a number of games which Dance's master, Francis Hayman, had illustrated earlier in the century in paintings
to decorate supper-boxes at Vauxhall Gardens. While he would have been familiar with Hayman's design, Dance's unusual treatment of the subject
is entirely his own creation.
Gallery label, September 2004
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