Focus on this artwork and explain the Print.
The print, produced from an engraving that was completed in part by Charles Mosley, was published on 6 March 1749. Entitled "O The Roast Beef of Old England", it was priced at 5 shillings and advertised as:A print design'd and engrav'd by MR HOGARTH, representing a PRODIGY which lately appear'd before the Gate of CALAIS.O the Roast-beef of Old England, &c. To be had at the Golden Head in Leicester-Square, and at the Print Shops.
The main difference between the painting and the engraving is the crow on top of the gate, which is absent in the engraving. The crow was a late addition to the painting to disguise an accidental tear, apparently caused by the canvas falling on a nail shortly after it was completed, although no evidence of damage was found when the painting was restored in 1966.
The Roast Beef of Old England crow engraving