The Political Cerberus, William Dent, 1784

A dog with three heads: that of fox in the centre is larger than those of north (left) and burke (right). Round its neck is a collar inscribed 'coalition', fastened by the padlock of 'interest'; from the collar rise the prince of wales's feathers inscribed 'ich dien'. All the mouths are open as if snarling. The animal's tail is a fox's brush inscribed 'euphorbium alias stinking popularity', an allusion to the bag thrown at fox on 14 feb. , see bmsat 6426, &c. The animal stands on guard before a closed door, probably intended for that of the treasury, 'portland' being inscribed in an oval across the panels. Beneath this is a knocker composed of a mask of the faces of fox and north, as in sayers's famous satire, see bmsat 6234, with a ring in its mouth. The stone arch surrounding the door is decorated with emblems of the coalition: the keystone is a mask of cromwell; on each side of it is an axe; at the spring of the arch is the mask of lord derby (left) and of keppel (right); both have horns; derby is grinning and keppel scowling. Beneath each mask is a noose of rope. 31 march 1784 etching. Date: 1784. Dimensions: Height: 247 mm; Width: 346 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: Cerberus. Collection: British Museum. The Political Cerberus (BM 1868,0808.5208)