Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

Plan your visit. 225 Madison Avenue at 36th Street, New York, NY 10016.

The battle of the clubs, or, The game of beat knave out of doors [print] / JS f.

Accession number
PML 146857.114
Creator
Sayers, James, 1748-1823.
Published
[London] : Pubd. by Thos. Cornell, Bruton Street, 21st Decr. 1792.
Credit line
Bequest of Gordon N. Ray, 1987.
Notes
Text beneath title reads: NB This Game should be play'd with all the Knaves of the Pack.
The state before the addition of aquatint, in which the ace of clubs is decorated with a crown and anchor, afterwards erased, to indicate the Crown & Anchor Association, and Fox's words are omitted.
Item no. 114 of a collection of prints by James Sayers (PML 146857); formerly part of an album of mounted prints, now disbound.
Description
1 print on wove paper : etching and aquatint ; image: 178 x 235 mm; plate mark: 202 x 243 mm; sheet: 237 x 280 cm
Provenance
From the library of Gordon N. Ray.
Summary
Print shows a medley of playing-cards: the whole suit of clubs headed by the king and queen. On the extreme right is the knave (Fox), who is being kicked out of the door by the toe of the king which protrudes beyond the lower right corner of the card. Fox looks alarmed, saying, "Now I must associate". The queen holds a shield on which are the arms of the City of London. A banner emerging from the cards is inscribed: "Associations for preserving Liberty & Property against Republicans & Levellers". Above the door (right) is a picture: "Plan of a new Constitution"; a house of cards is being demolished by a blast inscribed "Loyalty" which issues from a head in the upper left corner; the topmost (but dislodged) card is the knave of clubs. On the extreme left are two rats: one holds up a card, a ten of (mixed) clubs, diamonds, hearts, and spades; he says, "Association of the Dissenters" (the initial word 'loyal' has been scored through). The other rat watches him, saying, "As the Cards are against us we had better join the Clubs". Cf. George.
Classification
Department