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 apples and the horse-turds, or, Buonaparte among the golden pippins / Js. Gillray inv. & fect.

Image not available
James Gillray
1756-1815

The apples and the horse-turds, or, Buonaparte among the golden pippins / Js. Gillray inv. & fect.

[London] : Pubd. Feby 24th. 1800 by H. Humphrey 27 St James's Street, [1800]
etching, hand colored
image: 233 x 361 mm; plate mark: 259 x 361 mm; sheet: 290 x 451 mm
Bequest of Gordon N. Ray, 1987.
1986.443
Notes
Text below caption title reads: Explanation. - Some Horse-Turds being washed by the Current from a neighbouring Dunghill, espied a number of fair Apples swimming up the Stream, when, wishing to be thought of consequence, the Horse Turds would every Moment be bawling out, - "Lack a day, how We Apples swim! - See Buonaparte's Letter to his Majesty: and Mr W--b--ds remarks upon the Correspondence "between Crowned Heads" - viz. Kings & Horse Turds.
Provenance

From the library of Gordon N. Ray.

Summary

Print shows a winding river flowing towards a hill in the background surmounted by a temple of Fame. In the foreground is a 'Dunghill of Republican Horse Turds'. In the stream float turds from the dunghill, while farther up are golden apples, crowned and inscribed. The foremost is 'English-Pippin', close behind are 'Imperial-Pippin' and 'Russian-Pippin'; they are followed by a 'Turkish-Pippin' and a small 'Neapolitan' [Pippin]. From a mass of floating dung emerges the head of Bonaparte, wearing a feathered cocked hat inscribed 'First Horse Turd'. From his mouth issues a large label: 'A ha! par ma foi - how We Apples Swim!' Bonaparte swims between 'Spanish-Pippin' and 'Prussian-Pippin'. A spreading column of thick smoke arises from the dunghill, from which tiny heads emerge, the dominant one being Fox, who says: "Caira! Caira! - chacun à son tour! We shall all Swim in our turns". Tierney, the second head, says: "Yes! Yes! - none of Us was born to be Drowned". The others are Sheridan, Nicholls, Erskine, Burdett, Derby, and Taylor. Larger turds are: 'Atheism', 'Falshood', 'Regicide', 'Egalité', etc.

Associated names
Humphrey, Hannah, active 1774-1817, publisher.
Ray, Gordon N. (Gordon Norton), 1915-1986, former owner.
Classification
Department