A French Frigate Towing an English Man O' War into Port

A favorite trope of Rowlandson’s is the mismatched couple, most often a beautiful young woman and an ugly old man, as seen here. A frigate and a man-o’-war are both naval ships, and in the late eighteenth century, nautical terms frequently served as euphemisms for prostitution, referring to the close ties between prostitutes and sailors. The young woman in this drawing is likely a prostitute towing—literally, given his peg leg and cane—this old naval officer into her port. Exaggerated physical gestures enhance the suggestiveness of the scene. The woman’s fan points toward her lower body, while the man’s hard wooden leg grazes the inside of her calf (2022).