Man-midwives attempting to deliver a monstrous woman representing the Dutch National Convention. Etching attributed to James Gillray, 1796, after David Hess.
- Hess, David, 1770-1843.
- Date
- [1797?]
Download
About this picture
Description
In the centre sits a woman with seven heads of different animals. Her legs are spread and a devil is pulling on a looped cord or pushing a pitchfork up beneath her clothes. To left and right of her are two man-midwives. On the left is an old-fashioned Dutchman who wears spectacles and a wig and consults a book labelled "Sectio caes: et sectio synchondroseos". On the right is a modern revolutionary Frenchman who does not wear a wig and holds a pair of crude forceps. The first Dutch National Convention (Nationale Vergadering) took place from 1 March 1796 to 31 August 1797
Publication/Creation
[London] : [H. Humphrey?], [1797?]
Physical description
1 print : etching, printed in sanguine ; platemark 27.6 x 21.8 cm
Lettering
De Nationale Conventie in barensnood van eene constitutie.
Type/Technique
Language
- Dutch
Where to find it
Identifiers
License information
License information
You can use this work for any purpose, including commercial uses, without restriction under copyright law. You should also provide attribution to the original work, source and licence.
Creative Commons Attribution (CC BY 4.0) terms and conditions https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Credit
Man-midwives attempting to deliver a monstrous woman representing the Dutch National Convention. Etching attributed to James Gillray, 1796, after David Hess. Credit: Wellcome Collection. CC BY
We’re improving the information on this page. Find out more.