From his sister's private collection, this is our gallant adventurer caught in a moment of serene contemplation as he tinkers with his pedematic aerial substrate-focusing devices. Hogarth, being the machinist and Hedgehog engineer that he is, didn't often get to sit at home and enjoy his own parlor comforts. But between exotic travels and research for the Royal Armilary Society, he would usually be found at 812 Birdseller's Alley, in the company of his magpie, Chaw. Or, as here, his sister with whom he was on better terms than most of his estranged family. Bettony Justine nee Merricule is given credit for most of the paintings of Hogarth to have survived the Great War, and her style can be clearly seen in the choice of walnut inks.