A Rake's Progress Plate 3 (The Tavern Scene)

"A Rake's Progress," a series of eight etchings by English engraver and painter William Hogarth, was printed as social commentary for the 18th-century audience. The series focuses on the demise of Tom Rakewell, the heir of a prosperous merchant, who squanders his inheritance on an extravagant lifestyle.

In the third etching of the series Rakewell attends a rowdy party at Rose Garden, a well-known London brothel. While there, he foolishly spends his inheritance on alcohol and gambling. Inebriated, he is oblivious to the woman at the table who is attempting to steal from his pocket.

William Hogarth
12'' x 15'' Engraving with etching 1735

The Earle W. Newton Collection of British and American Studies

This collection contains reference materials that reveal the interconnections between Great Britain and the United States in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries, including 212 paintings, 1,288 prints, rare books, antique maps and other documents by master artists from Britain and the U.S., including William Hogarth, Sir Anthony van Dyck, Thomas Gainsborough, Sir Peter Lely, Joshua Reynolds and others.

1735
12'' x 15''
Engraving with etching
Not On View