Angelo's House–Escalus, a Justice, Elbow, Froth, Clown, Officers, etc. (Shakespeare, Measure for Measure, Act 2, Scene 1)
Not on view
Offering humorous relief to a dark discussion of justice in Shakespeare's "Measure for Measure," Escalus judges two foolish characters--the tapster Froth, and clownish bawd Pompey. They have been brought to court by Elbow, a constable who stands at right, and the engraving reproduces Smirke's painting now in the collection of the Royal Shakespeare Theatre at Stratford-upon-Avon. The composition was made for John Boydell, who launched the Shakespeare Gallery in 1786 as a publishing-cum-exhibition scheme that included a new illustrated edition of the plays, sets of large and small engravings, and a gallery on London's Pall Mall where the related paintings were displayed. The latter opened in 1789 with thirty-four works, then grew to contain about one hundred and seventy before financial difficulties, caused by the extended Napoleonic blocade of European ports, forced Boydell to declare bankruptcy, and sell his collection by lottery in 1805.
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