Its final title is a misnomer, as it in fact depicts an inn then on the outskirts of London at Paddington.

[1] The Scottish-born London-based artist made his name with such narrative genre pieces before later turning to portraits and history paintings on a greater scale.

Stylistically it references the seventeenth century genre works of the Dutch Old Master David Teniers the Younger.

[3] Today the painting is in the collection of the Tate Britain in Pimlico, having been purchased for the National Gallery in 1824.

[4] It was acquired as part of the collection of John Julius Angerstein and was therefore the only work of a living artist to feature in the initial National Gallery after its establishment.