A Whim - or a visit to the Mud Bridge
1 portrait of Mrs Grieve
A Whim - or a visit to the Mud Bridge
by John Kay
etching and aquatint, 1786
7 7/8 in. x 8 5/8 in. (200 mm x 220 mm) paper size
Purchased with help from the Friends of the National Libraries and the Pilgrim Trust, 1966
Reference Collection
NPG D16962
Artistback to top
- John Kay (1742-1826), Miniature painter and caricaturist. Artist or producer associated with 288 portraits, Sitter in 4 portraits.
Sittersback to top
- George Boyd (active 1784), Clothier. Sitter in 1 portrait.
- Jamie Duff (died 1788), Idiot known as 'Bailie Duff'. Sitter in 4 portraits. Identify
- Mrs Dunn (active 1784). Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Mrs Grieve (active 1784), Wife of the Lord Provost of Edinburgh. Sitter in 1 portrait.
- William Hall (1749-1808), Merchant and magistrate. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Andrew Hardie (died 1784), Baker. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Sibilla Hutton (circa 1740-1808), Milliner and Shopkeeper. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- John Lauder (died 1794), Coppersmith. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- James Lawson (died circa 1820), Leather merchant. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Mrs Penny (active 1784), Wife of John Penny. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Alexander Ritchie (active 1784), Draper. Sitter in 1 portrait.
- Henry Watson (active 1784), Hardware merchant. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Malcolm Wright (circa 1750-1825), Haberdasher and magistrate. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
- Mrs Wright (active 1784). Sitter in 1 portrait.
- William Yetts (active 1784), Barber. Sitter in 1 portrait. Identify
Subjects & Themesback to top
Events of 1786back to top
Current affairs
Philosopher and politician Edmund Burke instigates impeachment proceedings against Warren Hastings, former Governor-General of Bengal after concerns about the moral standards of the British in India are raised.Prime Minister William Pitt appoints commissioners for the reduction of the national debt and establishes a sinking fund of £1 million a year.
Government approves the establishment of a penal colony at Botany Bay.
Art and science
Robert Burns publishes Poems Chiefly in the Scottish Dialect bringing him immediate success across the country.Engraver and publisher John Boydell initiates plans for his Shakespeare Gallery in an effort to establish a school of British history painting.
Merchant David Dale establishes New Lanark in South Lanarkshire, Scotland, as a model cotton milling community.
International
General Charles Cornwallis succeeds Warren Hastings as Governor-General in India.Composer Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's Marriage of Figaro premieres in Vienna.
Francisco Goya is appointed court painter to the Spanish king Charles III.
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