Thomas Rowlandson (London 1756-1827)

An old hag leans back in an armchair in a household interior. She is surrounded by large and muscular cats, and she turns her head to the left in order to kiss one of them on the mouth, revealing a rather macabre expression. Her right hand rests on a cat standing atop the table beside her. Two cats fight on her chair-back, two sit on her lap, while another attempts to scramble up her skirt. Seated on a cushion on the floor are two large cats and two kittens. On the left hand side of the composition, two further cats are lapping from a bowl. In marked contrast to the old woman, a pretty girl stands behind feeding a tightly swaddled cat from a spoon. On the table are a decanter, glass, and small bowl, as well as a large bowl of 'Cat Lap', and a paper entitled 'Essay on Maids'. An engraving with differences, but which is clearly based on the present work, is housed in the British Museum, London [dated 1 March 1811, museum number 1937,0719.12].