William Satchwell Leney & Henry Fuseli

Shakespeare. Second Part of King Henry the Fourth. Act II, Scene IV. Doll Tearsheet, Falstaff, Henry & Poins. Published March 25th. 1795. by John & Josiah Boydell, at the Shakspeare Gallery, Pall Mall & at No. 90. Cheapside, London. Engraved by Wm. Leney. Painted by Henry Fuseli, R. A.

Exeunt Pistol and Bardolph.

Doll Tearsheet. I pray thee, Jack, be quiet, the rascal's gone. Ah, you Woreson little valiant villain, you!

Hostess Quickly. Are you not hurt i' th'groin Methought 'a made a shrewd thrust at your belly.

Enter Bardolph.

Falstaff. Have you turn'd him out a' doors?

Bardolph. Yea, sir. The rascal's drunk; you have hurt him, sir, i'th'shoulder.

Falstaff. A rascal! to brave me?

Doll Tearsheet.. Ah, you sweet little rogue, you! Alas, poor ape, hou thou sweat'st!
Come let me wipe thy face. Come, on, you whoreson chops. Ah,
rogue! I'faith, I love thee. Thou art as valorous as Hector of Troy,
worth five of Agamemnon, and ten times better than the Nine
Worthies. Ah, villain!

Falstaff. Ah, rascally slave! I will toss the rogue in a blanket.

Doll Tearsheet. Do, and thou dar'st for thy heart. And thou dost, I'll canvass thee
between a pair of sheets

Enter Sneak and other musicians.

Page. The music is come, sir.

Falstaff. Let them play; - Play, sirs. - Sit on my knee, Doll. A rascal bragging
slave! the rogue fled from me like quicksilver.

Doll Tearsheet. And thou followedst him like a church. Thou whoreson little
tidy Bartholomew boar-pig, when wilt thou leave fighting o' days
and foining o' nights, and begin to patch up thine old body for heaven?

[Enter behind, Prince Henry and Poins, disguised like Drawers.]

Falstaff. Peace, good Doll! do not speak like a death's head: do not bid me remember mine end.

Inspired by a William Shakespeare play, Second Part of King Henry the Fourth. Act Two, Scene Four, this scene portrays Sir John Falstaff, a corpulent, conceited, cowardly and jovial, old rogue whose only interest in life is to delight himself in such pleasures as sake (drink), women and other fineries of life. He is constantly scheming, and deceiving, a seducer, and a thief who has little regard for the property of others. Before traveling north to recruit soldiers, Falstaff has stopped at the Boar's Head Tavern in Eastcheap, run by Mistress Quickly (one of Falstaff's conquests, but to whom he is highly in debt). Here, Falstaff sprawls his immense body on a large chair, holds a goblet filled with liquor in one hand and with Doll Tearsheet (his favourite foul mouthed, drunken harlot) curled on his lap. He is arguing with Doll Tearsheet, and Pistol (an old, abusive windbag & officer in the army), as well as making disparaging remarks against Prince Henry and Edward Poins. Without his knowledge, the Prince of Wales (son of King Henry the IV) and Edward Poins (Henry's constant companion and accomplice in debauchery) have come to spy on Falstaff disguised as Drawers (tavern men). They overhear Falstaff's comments and confront him, but are stopped short by the call to arms. This is a superb, original example of the British art of William Satchwell Leney, Henri Fuseli, and the Boydell Shakespeare Gallery.

This original engraving is a 'First Edition Impression'. 4. 'First Edition Impressions'. The completed set of Boydell's Shakespeare engravings was published in London in 1803. The full publisher's address appears along the lower margin as well as the text for the play. The heading, 'Shakspeare', is now filled in with stippling. The text below the image of this proof impression reads;

"Shakespeare. Second Part of King Henry the Fourth. Act II, Scene IV. Doll Tearsheet, Falstaff, Henry & Poins. Published March 25th. 1795. by John & Josiah Boydell, at the Shakspeare Gallery, Pall Mall & at No. 90. Cheapside, London. Engraved by Wm. Leney. Painted by Henry Fuseli, R. A.

Dol. I'faith, and thou followd'st him like a church.
Thou whoreson little tidy Bartholomew boar-pig,
when will thou leave fighting o'days, & foining o'nights,
& Begin to patch up thine old body for heaven."

An Important Note on Boydell States and Editions: Proof impressions and true first edition impressions are easily identified by their fine lines and strong contrasts of black and white tones. Later more common editions print in a more overall grey tone and contain areas of re-working. Briefly, the publishing history of these great engravings can be categorized into five states or editions:

1. 'Artist's Proofs'. These are the earliest of states and were printed in only a handful of impressions. They are identified not only by their vibrant lines and tones but by the fact that they lack any letters along the lower margin.
2. 'Proofs Before Title'. These impressions usually contain the names of the artist, publisher and engraver along the lower margin. They lack the title of the specific play depicted and usually the heading -- 'Shakspeare' -- is smaller than in the published edition. Once again, this state was printed in a very small numbers.
3. 'Open Letter Proofs'. These impressions bear the title of the play. the heading, 'Shakspeare' (Shakespeare), is yet to be filled in with stippling. These impressions were printed before the publication of the first edition and were probably struck from the plate at a customer's request. Perhaps ten to twenty Open Letter Proofs exist for each engraving.
4. 'First Edition Impressions'. The completed set of Boydell's Shakespeare engravings was published in London in 1803. The full publisher's address appears along the lower margin as well as the text for the play. The heading, 'Shakspeare', is now filled in with stippling. Both first edition impressions and proofs were most often printed on either hand-made, laid paper or wove paper bearing the 'J. Whatman' watermark.
5. 'Posthumous Impressions and Restrikes' As early as 1807, John Stockdale of London issued a second edition of the Shakespeare prints. They continued to be published throughout the first half of the nineteenth century. Finally, in 1852, an enterprising dentist in New York City (with the delightful name of Shearjashub Spooner) acquired the plates, restored them and produced the last edition. These prints are most commonly offered for sale.

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