"The Tour of Doctor Syntax: In Search of the Picturesque" by William Combe. London: R. Ackermann, 1823. Art by Thomas Rowlandson

William Combe’s “The Tour of Doctor Syntax: In Search of the Picturesque” was begun in 1809 and published in book form in 1812. Together with the accompanying aquatints by Thomas Rowlandson that inspired the poem, it satirizes the aesthetic ideals lying behind the picturesque and its frequently pompous followers. The poem tells how Dr Syntax, a curate, sets off in search of the ideal picturesque landscape only to be continually thwarted by bathetic and farcical inconveniences. During the course of the poem the unfortunate Dr Syntax stumbles into a lake while attempting to reach the perfect location from which to sketch a suitably ruined castle, is chased by a bull and driven to distraction by the incessant bleating of sheep. - See more at: www.bl.uk/collection-items/the-tour-of-doctor-syntax#stha...

 

This first tour of Dr. Syntax is accompanied by thirty colored illustrations by Thomas Rowlandson.

 

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