The Petitioner

Antonio Piccinni 1846 - 1920

Summary

A man standing in a doorway with his hat in his hand. He is facing to the right and is seen in profile. He wears a dark frock coat and has a top hat held by his side in his right hand. He has short hair and a beard. The background shows a wall with a column to the right and the man is standing on a tiled floor. This etching was one of a collection formed by print expert PG Hamerton (1834-94) for the Manchester Art Museum, an educational gallery which opened in 1886 in the industrial suburb of Ancoats. The collection was transferred to the City Art Gallery in 1912, the Art Museum maintaining that they did not have enough space to display it. On acquisition, the prints were displayed together, with a catalogue of the pithy comments on each print that Hamerton had made in 1882. For this work, he had noted, 'I call this "The Petitioner," because I take him to be a poor man at a rich man's door going to ask for some favour or employment. Nothing could be more characteristic than the face, figure, and dress.'