SEEING.
Date1784
After work by
John Nixon
Publisher
William Wells
OriginEngland, London
MediumBlack and white stipple engraving with etching and period hand color
DimensionsOH: 9 3/8" x OW: 11 7/8"
Credit LineMuseum Purchase
Object number1964-472,2
DescriptionThe lower margin reads: "SEEING./ I. Nixon Inv.t et del./ Publish'd April 21.st 1784 by W.m Wells N.o 132 (opposite Salisbury Court) Fleet Street London."Label TextPart of a series on the senses. A magician is shown conjuring up all manner of tricks. In his hand he holds a card presumably taken from a stack on the table, or from the hand of a woman in the audience who seems to have the other half of a deck. A box and cup are also on his table. An audience of men, woman and child have gathered to watch this performance. Behind a curtain to the rear is a helper in a harlequen costume. A candle chandelier hangs over the table, from an ornament in the shape of a crown. The curtains to the rear seem to have various things sketched on them.ProvenanceBefore 1964, the Old Print Shop (New York, NY); 1964-present, purchased by the Colonial Williamsburg Foundation (Williamsburg, VA).
