Hogarth, William (1697 London 1764). Columbus breaking the Egg. Columbus’ answer to the blasphemers of his performance. Engraving by Thomas Cook (c. 1744 – London 1818). Inscribed: Engraved by T. Cook., title as before and rest of the address Paternoster Row August 1^st. 1800. 15.8 x 19.2 cm.

The 1752 subscription ticket for “Analysis of Beauty” whose essence, the sinuous line, is symbolized by the two eels with eggs in the oval form of the plate in front. According to Peter Bexte, William Hogarth – Analyse der Schönheit, 1995, Hogarth used this scene together for a parody on Leonardo’s ‘Lord’s Supper’:

“ Christ (is) replaced by Columbus, and the astonished disciples became scholars taken unaware ”.

Columbus’ turn to the right as seen from the onlooker follows Hogarth’s own etching which might be, as repeatedly, in reverse to its model. – Cook “made a name as Hogarth engraver for himself, too” (Thieme-Becker). – Two sides trimmed within the white platemark with only a fine margin at top.
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– – – The same as Hogarth’s own etching in the state of 1753 in an impression from the plate reworked by the royal engraver James Heath (1757 London 1834) about 1822 (“Even these impressions became relatively rare today though”, Art Gallery Esslingen 1970; and Meyers Konv.-Lex., 4^th ed., VIII [1888], 625: “A fine edition”). Inscribed: Design’d & Etch’d by Wm. Hogarth Decem 1. 1753. 16.5 x 19.5 cm. – On Columbus’ bearing see before.

Illustrations Hogarth Catalogue Zurich, 1983, 78 + Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, Jan. 23, 1996 (Friedmar Apel, Verfolgung einer Schlangenlinie). – On buff paper. – Wide-margined.
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– – – The same in Cook’s smaller repetition. Inscribed: Hogarth pinxt. / T. Cook sculpt. / Published by Longman, Hurst, Rees, & Orme, Nov. 1^st. 1807., title as before. Image size 14.1 x 17 cm. – Columbus’ bearing as before. – Trimmed within the wide white platemark. In this some small spots.
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– – – The same in engraving by Carl Heinrich Rahl (Hoffenheim 1779 – Vienna 1843). (1818/23.) 18.9 x 20 cm. – Columbus’ bearing as seen from the onlooker now to the right as on the following sheets, too, while Riepenhausen is known to have corrected Hogarth’s reversed engravings. – Upper right plate no. 49.
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– – – The same in engraving by Ernst Ludwig Riepenhausen (1765 Göttingen 1840, university engraver there). Inscribed: 49 / W. Hogarth inv. 18.3 x 23 cm. – Early, toned impression. – Wide-margined.
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– – – The same by Riepenhausen as before, but on slightly toned minor paper. – A few foxspots and light box pleat in the white lower margin.
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– – – The same by Riepenhausen as before, but in an impression about 1850 on especially buff paper.
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– – – The same in lithograph by C. F. Heintz. (1833/36.) Inscribed: 53. / Columbus stellt ein Ey auf die Spitze. / Lith. v. C. F. Heintz . 21.8 x 17.8 cm. – Extensive subtext in German: Columbus puts an egg on its top.
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– – – The same in steel engraving about 1840. 13.5 x 18 cm. – With title in German + English.
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„ vielen Dank für die schnelle Zusendung des Buches ‚Der Ahorn‘. Ich freue mich insbesondere, weil dieses Buch mein Opa geschrieben hat und es somit für mich eine große Bedeutung hat. Viele Grüße aus Berlin “

(Frau U. C., 7. Juni 2004)