The Dextrous Trimmer, or Poor Pill Garlick left in the Suds
Within a paneled interior, a portly man sits in a chair, his head wrapped in a towel and body protected by a sheet. With closed eyes and lathered chin, he supports a bowl under his chin, waiting for a barber to finish. The latter proves himself a rascal, however, and heads for a door at right with a moneybag.
Text once printed below, now trimmed away, identified Richard Houston as the engraver who based this image on a painting by Francis Hayman used to decorate a room at London's Vauxhall Gardens. The following verse underscored the meaning:
"The Trimming Rogue secures his Prize,
By closing up the Owners Eyes.
And here the Act you see display'd:--
For Shaving Clean is half the Trade."
Another layer is added through the expression "Poor Pill Garlick" in the title. In eighteenth-century England this meant a scapegoat or wretch and was often applied to bald-headed men whose bald pates were thought to resemble peeled garlic cloves (a connection drawn through the similar pronunciation pill and peel in some dialects).
Text once printed below, now trimmed away, identified Richard Houston as the engraver who based this image on a painting by Francis Hayman used to decorate a room at London's Vauxhall Gardens. The following verse underscored the meaning:
"The Trimming Rogue secures his Prize,
By closing up the Owners Eyes.
And here the Act you see display'd:--
For Shaving Clean is half the Trade."
Another layer is added through the expression "Poor Pill Garlick" in the title. In eighteenth-century England this meant a scapegoat or wretch and was often applied to bald-headed men whose bald pates were thought to resemble peeled garlic cloves (a connection drawn through the similar pronunciation pill and peel in some dialects).
Artwork Details
- Title: The Dextrous Trimmer, or Poor Pill Garlick left in the Suds
- Engraver: Richard Houston (Irish, Dublin 1721/22–1775 London)
- Artist: After Francis Hayman (British, Exeter (?) 1707/08–1776 London)
- Publisher: John Bowles (British, 1701?–1779)
- Date: 1751
- Medium: Mezzotint
- Dimensions: Sheet: 9 5/16 × 13 7/8 in. (23.7 × 35.2 cm)
- Classification: Prints
- Credit Line: Rogers Fund, 1970
- Object Number: 1970.538.6
- Curatorial Department: Drawings and Prints
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