The Complete Cartoon Archive
Puck's Gallery of Celebrities—The King of A-Shantee
Opper, Frederick Burr, 1857-1937, artist · January 1882
Frederick Opper's single-panel cartoon depicts two Irish immigrants inside a ramshackle shanty: a man seated on an overturned washtub and a woman standing nearby amid squalid domestic clutter. The punning caption—'The King of A-Shantee'—collapses 'shanty' (the slum dwelling) with 'Ashanti' (the West African kingdom). Both figures are rendered with exaggerated features characteristic of anti-Irish caricature of the 1870s–80s. Puck deployed such imagery during peak Irish immigration, reflecting anxieties about Tammany Hall political power and urban overcrowding.
About this artifact
- Creator
- Opper, Frederick Burr, 1857-1937, artist
- Date
- January 1882
- Rights
- Public domain — free to view, share, and reuse.
- Restoration
- Digitally restored and hosted by ComicBooks.com · high-resolution version available.
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