A Peep into Friar Bacon's Study

Charles James Fox|Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford|The Right Honorable Edmund Burke|George III, King of Great Britain and Ireland|William Humphrey|Thomas Rowlandson

March 3, 1784 · Hand-colored etching · Drawings and Prints

King George III is represented as Friar Bacon, standing in a magician's room and holding pointers at three circles, which represent the Constitution during different time periods. From left to right, they are inscribed "Time is Past," "Time Is," and "Time Was." The first shows the king seated on a throne surrounded with rays of glory emanating from him. Two small circles of the two Houses of Parliament sit on the exterior. The second has three circles within it, the King's being the largest, followed by the House of Lords, and then the House of Commons. The third contains three circles of equal size, representing three equal branches of government. Edmund Burke, Frederick North, and Charles James Fox look in through a doorway at left.

Artist

Charles James Fox|Frederick North, 2nd Earl of Guilford|The Right Honorable Edmund Burke|George III, King of Great Britain and Ireland|William Humphrey|Thomas Rowlandson

Date

March 3, 1784

Medium

Hand-colored etching

Department

Drawings and Prints

Credit line

The Elisha Whittelsey Collection, The Elisha Whittelsey Fund, 1959