| Method | Copper engraving with hand colouring |
| Artist | [Anonymous] |
| Published | London, Publish'd May 25, 1809, by John Wallis, 13 Warwick Squ. Newgate Street |
| Dimensions | Image 373 x 230 mm, Sheet 450 x 290 mm |
| Notes |
A rare printed broadside outlining the laws of cricket set below an engraved headpiece depicting a Cricket Match. The engraving is a near copy of the oil painting "A Game of Cricket (The Royal Academy Club in Marylebone Fields, now Regent's Park)" after Francis Hayman (YCBA B2001.2.165). The positioning and posture of the players is an almost exact match to the painting, however the background has been altered to include a bell tent topped with St. George's flag, sheltering a group of ladies at a table, a rustic dwelling and distant windmill and church tower. The publisher, Wallis, had previously published a broadside on the Laws of cricket in 1785 titled: "As Established at the Star and Garter in Pall-Mall by a Committee of Noblemen & Gentlemen" this version of the laws from 1809 was issued in the year in which the MCC ("the Club at St Mary-le-bone") republished the updated Laws of cricket in their entirety. John Wallis (died 1818) was a publisher, print, book, and map seller, publishing from Ludgate Street under the name "Map Warehouse" from 1775 and later in Warwick Square as "Instructive Toy Warehouse" from 1805. Along with his two sons John Wallis Jr. and Edward Wallis, they became one of the most prolific publishers of board games in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Condition: Good clean impression. Light dirt build-up, stain, and repaired tear to bottom of sheet, not affecting printed image. Printed on laid paper with an unidentified watermark: single handled pot,with the initials "I.D.",topped with a crescent |
| Framing | unmounted |
| Price | £500.00 |
| Stock ID | 52337 |