Air

Date1756

After work by Philippe Mercier (1689 - 1760)

Engraver Richard Houston (1721-1775)

Publisher Robert Sayer (1725-1794)

Publisher Elizabeth Bakewell

OriginEngland, London

MediumHand-colored mezzotint

DimensionsOther (Sight): 13 3/4 × 9 3/4in. (34.9 × 24.8cm)

Credit LineMuseum Purchase

Object number1952-376,2

DescriptionLower margin reads: "Ph Mercier pinx.t/ Publish'd according to Act of Parliament, October 1.st 1756./ Rich.d Houston fecit/ Soft blowes the Vernal Zephyr o'er the fields, / And newblown Sweets from Flora's bosom yields,/ Delightfull Breeze that sooths the Lovers Smart, / And cools the terror of an anxious Heart. / London printed for Rob.t Sayer opposite Fetter Lane Fleet Street & Eliz. th Bakewell in Cornhill - Price 1. 6.s"
Label TextThis print is part of a set representing the elements: Fire, Water, Air, Earth. This print, "Air,” features a fashionably dressed young woman taking a walk outdoors. She holds a bird on her finger and the verse in the lower margin of the print alludes to a walk in the open air. Sets of prints depicting young women as allegorical representations of the seasons, months of the year, times of day, and elements were popular in the eighteenth-century. The rest of the set: Fire, 1952-376,1; Water 1952-376, 3; and Earth 1952-376, 4.

Verse at lower margin reads:
Soft blowes the Vernal Zephyr o'er the fields,
And newblown Sweets from Flora's bosom yields,
Delightfull Breeze that sooths the Lovers Smart,
And cools the terror of an anxious Heart.