Dirty dishes and an 18th century cut out

A month ago my wife surprised me with a magazine cut-out of an Eighteenth century gentleman placed on the kitchen windowsill. “I love it!” I cheered. I see it every time I go to the kitchen sink. It’s there next to the washing up liquid, the nailbrush, the dead fly. She’s always saying my interest is the Seventeenth century – I’ve given up correcting her – but here now: this fella is most definitely of the Eighteenth century.

This little cut-out is a colour pic about 15cm in height, and the fella’s wearing a blue overcoat and breeches, white stockings with black slip ons and a gold buckle, with waistcoat in gold, a cravat and three-tiered frill jabot, a blue cocked hat and tricorn. He’s carrying high in his left hand a bouquet of red roses.

An Eighteenth century gentleman’s outfit

Most people recognise the outfit – the long overcoat, the knee-length trousers, buckled shoes, waistcoat, pointy hat. Probably they don’t know it’s Eighteenth century, though. And that was me. Until I discovered James Boswell in summer 2021. And then it all became clear. The outfit was a pretty tight fit for the Eighteenth century.

I saw the outfits on the dustcover artwork of the James Boswell Trade Journals that I was collecting. They sit on the top shelf of my bookcase and I can see them every day from my work station at home. The first eight of the journals in the US-published McGraw-Hill editions and the first six of the UK-published Heinemann editions have artwork on the spines which shows Boswell in various poses and there he is wearing just that Eighteenth century attire.

Now, four weeks later I’m doing the dishes and she’s in the next room watching true crime programmes. It dawns on me: “Am I being manipulated?” Is this little Eighteenth century fella a carrot to get me to do the dishes?

If I find another cut out in the garage by the lawnmower, I’ll know my theory is correct.