Snapshots of the Past

The rake's progress at the university. No. 1. Ah me! What perils doth that youth encounter ... – Historic Print

The rake's progress at the university. No. 1. Ah me! What perils doth that youth encounter ..., London : H. Humphrey, 1806 October 22 [1851 printing] — antique engraving
The rake's progress at the university. No. 1. Ah me! What perils doth that youth encounter ..., London : H. Humphrey, 1806 October 22 [1851 printing]. Antique engraving from the Historic Print Archive collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

A window into the past: The rake's progress at the university. No. 1. Ah me! What perils doth that youth encounter ..., preserved in this antique engraving. The original is held by the Library of Congress, so what you hang is a true record of its time.

Order it framed and ready to hang, or unframed to match a frame you already love. It brings character to any room and makes a memorable gift. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Since 2001, Snapshots of the Past has shipped historic prints to tens of thousands of customers around the world.

The rake's progress at the university. No. 1. Ah me! What perils doth that youth encounter ...

Order a print

Secure checkout · SSL encryptedPowered by Stripe and PayPal

Free shipping in the lower 48 states. The checkout page shows the picture, size and price before you pay.

Sign up for our newsletter

Sent securely. No purchase needed. Unsubscribe anytime.

Ask about licensing or this print

This plate is the first in a satirical series by James Gillray, the leading British caricaturist of his day, who sends a university student down the same path Hogarth's rake followed in his 1735 engravings. The caption, "Ah me! What perils doth that youth encounter," sets a mock-heroic tone that treats ordinary student excess as a moral catastrophe. The London publisher H. Humphrey, Hannah Humphrey, issued much of Gillray's work, and this impression is from an 1851 reissue of his plates in H. G. Bohn's collected edition. The joke depends on viewers recognizing Hogarth's sequence, so it rewards a look at the original series.

Created / publishedLondon : H. Humphrey, 1806 October 22 [1851 printing]
Medium1 print : engraving.
GenreBook illustrations 1850-1860.Engravings 1850-1860.
NotesIllus. in: The works of James Gillray, from the original plates ... London : Printed for H.G. Bohn ..., 1851, v. 1, plate 545.
SubjectsStudents--1800-1810. Rake's progress--1800-1810. Universities & colleges--1800-1810.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan4,096 × 3,280 px · prints to 14 × 11 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-177067

More from the Historic Print Archive collection

Snapshots of the Past helps heritage brands, museums, historians and storytellers tell stories with history: historic prints, image licensing and historical storytelling drawn from more than 25 years of research and curation.

Related pictures

College girls play basket-ball - match game between students of Stanford University and the University of CaliforniaCollege girls play basket-ball - match game between students of Stanford UniversExtempo club of Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn.Extempo club of Fisk University, Nashville, Tenn.[University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee][University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee]Celebration of the Psychological Department, Clark University, Worcester, MassachusettsCelebration of the Psychological Department, Clark University, Worcester, Massac[Two black students at National Youth Administration library exhibit][Two black students at National Youth Administration library exhibit][Louis Armstrong plays trumpet while Joey Adams, president of the American Guild of Variety Artists Youth Fund, presents him with an award at Carnegie Hall][Louis Armstrong plays trumpet while Joey Adams, president of the American Guild