The Butifyer. A touch upon 'The Times' plate 1, William Hogarth, 1762

Satire on hogarth's support for lord bute and his print 'the times plate 1'; a larger version of bm satires 3971. Hogarth sits on a platform vigorously whitewashing a very large boot suspended from a curved post; hogarth's palette with his line of beauty hangs from a spur on the great boot; a big bucket of whitewash on the platform is labelled "pension"; whitewash splashes temple, newcastle, and pitt who stand below admiring the contents of a little box that temple is holding, perhaps containing the scroll conferring on pitt the freedom of the city of london. Pitt holds up his arm to ward off the spray and in doing so obscures the face of a man behind (perhaps intended for john wilkes) standing next to charles churchill who is wearing clerical dress. To the right, beneath the platform a scotch bagpiper, a ragged woman scratching and a bare-foot little boy stand looking towards the gate of st. James’s palace. In the background on the left is a fine building. Beneath is etched "in justice to mr. Hogarth the engraver of this plate: owns to the publick, he took the hint of the butifyer from a print of mr pope white-washing lord burlingtons gate, at the same time bespatring the rest of the nobility. " 1762 etching. Date: 1762. Dimensions: Height: 305 mm; Width: 200 mm. Medium: paper. Depicted People: William Hogarth. Collection: British Museum. The Butifyer. A touch upon 'The Times' plate 1 (BM 1868,0808.4231)