Sailors at a Methodist sermon, 1819



Sailors at a Methodist sermon, 1819.
London, Woodward delt; S.W. Fores publisher.
The Lewis Walpole Library.

This caricature from 1819 is almost at the end of this blog's time period, and my first image covering the post-Treat of Paris era. In it a smug sailor gives back a snappy retort to a wild-haired Methodist preacher.

Of interest is how the sailor is shown to be a sailor when he is dressed almost identically to the man behind him, in a short, single-breasted jacket worn open, a handkerchief tied tightly around his neck, a single-breasted waistcoat worn buttoned, trousers that are a bit baggy in the rear, and a hat. It is not necessarily unique clothing that unmistakably marks him to be a sailor but the colors of his clothes: a blue jacket, red waistcoat, white trousers, and black hat. The colorist knew what people expected a stereotypical sailor to look like, and colored his clothes as such. (As a side note, the version of this print in the collection of Royal Museums Greenwich is colored the same way.)

Differentiating him from the men around him is the fact that the sailor carries a stick with a big, knobby head and that his round hat is somewhat "squashy" looking, with a hatband, turned-up brim, and a large crown. Instead of being brushed forward as was fashionable on land or worn curled his short brown hair is naturally curly and flows out from under his hat.


The man all the way to the right may also be a sailor, judging by the blue rosette in his hat, blue jacket and trousers, black handkerchief, and stick tucked under his arm.

Making a sailor a free mason, 1807

"Making a Sailor a Free Mason." London : Pub. by T. Tegg, [1807].
The Lewis Walpole Library.

Today's caricature from 1807 is another print of a sailor where I have multiple colorizations to look at, giving several perspectives on what assumptions early 19th c. colorists had about the colors of sailor clothing. This print is from The Caricature Magazine, or Hudibrastic Mirror, of which Volume I began publication in 1807.


Our sailor Benjamin Block wishes to become a Freemason, and is kneeling on a cushion surrounded by men in aprons with masonic symbols lying on the floor. He has suffered the indignity of having his shirt-tails pulled out and "cut and marked with divers mysteries signs, and tangents", and all that remains of his initiation is for him to be blindfolded and have some business with a red hot poker, which he objects to most strenuously. While there is a good deal more to be said about the context of the scene and this cartoon I will leave that for a future date when I am more familiar with my subject material.


In all three versions the sailor wears black shoes with big buckles, white stockings, and a blue jacket with buttons painted blue. His dress varies mainly in the color of his trousers and his handkerchief.

In this version Jack's trousers are white with no colorization, just the black lines of the etching. His neckstock is white, which makes it look like a ruffled-front shirt, and his shoe buckles are gold.

In this version Jack's trousers are striped white and blue, his handkerchief is red, and his shoe buckles are white metal.

In this version Jack's trousers are striped white and red, his handkerchief is black with some white shirt showing, and his shoe buckles are white metal. Also unique to this colorization is that Jack's straight, spiky hair is black instead of brown.

Part of the crew of His Majesty's Ship Guardian, 1790 (British Tars)

Today's post is copied with permission from British Tars: 1740-1790: Part of the crew of His Majesty's Ship Guardian, 1790.



"Part of the crew of His Majesty's Ship Guardian endeavouring to escape in the boats".
Robert Dodd, 1790, National Portrait Gallery (Australia).

"...Robert Dodd's print is somewhat idealized in its portrayal, but decidedly more harrowing. Walls of ice threaten the stranded ship, and the boats are tossed on threatening waves. When the Guardian, bound for New South Wales with convicts aboard, struck ice and was stranded, many of her crew and passengers took to the boats. We see only some of the 259 people that crammed onto the five boats. Of these only fifteen would survive. Riou managed to get ahead of the rapidly gaining water in his hold (at its height, there was sixteen feet of water in his ship) and made it safety. His tale of survival would be the inspiration for the third act of Patrick O'Brian's novel "Desolation Island."

Looking over the larboard rail amidships is Lieutenant Riou. He stands with a certain posture of confidence that the other figures in this piece lack. The men around him scrambling across the deck and down the side into the boats wear trousers, jackets that end at or below the waist, and round hats with narrow brims and tall cylindrical crowns.

Keeping his balance and giving instructions to the men in the boats, the central figure in this detail is Master Celements. His left hand holds an octant, a navigational instrument that will be essential to the survival of the men. The men are ill-equipped for surviving in open arctic waters. Many are without jackets, some without even waistcoats. Many wear loose black neckerchiefs, looser than I am accustomed to seeing in images of sailors. Some have work caps, some round hats with narrow brims and tall cylindrical crows, and one (an oarsman in Master Clements' boat) wears a cloth wrapped around his head. Movies, TV shows, and reenactors often portray sailors with a cloth wrapped around the head, but this is the first image I've seen of it. It is possible that this sailor has bandaged a wound, rather than wearing it for comfort or fashion, but with his back turned toward us, it is difficult to say. The only other figure of note is the tar standing at the mast of his boat, who wears a double breasted jacket and a white neckcloth tied in a fancy sort of manner."