16/2000

Collection

Paintings, Prints and Drawings

Brief description

'A CLASSICAL TEACHER - The Schoolmaster is abroad - vide Henry Brougham', etching by William Heath, published by Thomas McClean in London, 1830.

Title

A CLASSICAL TEACHER - The Schoolmaster is abroad - vide Henry Brougham

Object name

print
etching

Object number

16/2000

Production person

William Heath (artist)
Thomas McLean (publisher)

Production date

1830 (published)

Production place

London (published)

Period

Georgian (1714-1837)

Material

paper

Technique

printed
etched

Physical description

Black and white etching on paper, framed and glazed, surrounded with a border and with a verse and publication line printed below the image. The print has been remargined and mounted.

Content description

This print depicts a school master's parlour with the master seated at a table questioning a young man who has come about the advertised post for a classics master. In the parlour there is a fireplace with a curved fender, fire tongs, an overmantel mirror, hearth rug and bell pull to the right of the fire surround. On top of the fire surround is a bust of Shakespeare. The school master sits at a tripod table which is covered with a cloth on top of which are a stack of books and an ink stand and quills, beside the table is a large screen. The school master is looking for a classical teacher but the young man who is there to apply for the job is ignorant of this subject. The teacher says, 'Oh - youve come about the Advertisement - I want a Gentleman / to teach the Claſsics as far as HOMER & VIRGIL.' The young man replies with, 'Yes Sir - but how far might HOMER & VIRGIL be from TOWN / all my fiends live in London - and I should not like to teach / the Claſsics farther than Hammersmith Turnham Green or at the / utmost distance not farther than Brentford Sir -'. To the right of the scene a classroom full of children can be seen with one child looking into the parlour.

Content object

fender
fire tongs
overmantel mirror
hearth rug
bell pull
tripod table
ink stand

Dimensions

Height: 35cm
Width: 24cm

Website keywords

fireplaces
fire tools
floor treatments
tables
seating

Label

Label text for the exhibition At Home with the World, Geffrye Museum (20 March 2012- 9 September 2012):

A Classical Teacher –
The Schoolmaster is Abroad
Etching on paper
By William Heath, London, England, 1830

The prospective schoolteacher in this satirical print is not a worldly fellow and mistakes the ancient intellectuals Homer and Virgil for places outside his familiar London. It is a comment on the questionable quality of popular education at this time; a proper and polite education was thought to include an understanding of classical literature and languages.