Satire on Nicola Porpora who was a rival to Handel in the 1730s. The composer, a gaunt man wearing a large brimmed hat from which hangs a sheet of music, is seated astride the back of a man kneeling on the floor; he plays a small organ that rests on the man's shoulders; an owl perched on the top of the organ sings, "Da - a - a - a - vido". The man supporting the organ is playing the pan pipes; his breeches have been pulled down and a youth provides the wind for his music with a pair of bellows inserted into his anus; he carries on his back a basket laden with further pairs of bellow. Three sheets of paper lying on the floor refer to Porpora's works, "Poly[fem]o", "A[rtaxer]xes" and "D[avi]d".
<br>Etching
1735<div style="display: none;">date QS:P571,+1735-00-00T00:00:00Z/9</div>
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