Richard Houston

HA! HA! HAH!____I've got the last Chink

4.5 x 6 inches

A mezzotint droll with faint hand colour, printed for Carington Bowles in London circa 1780.

Drolls were all the rage in Georgian England, collected for their satirical, mischievous and often smutty humour. It was not uncommon for serious engravers such as Richard Houston to turn his hand to the engraving of these charming little caricatures. In this instance a beaming young man in a jaunty hat counts out coins into his hand, goading the viewer with the fact that he has ended up with all the money.