1862 – The Rat and the Oil Bottle

“The Rat and the Oil-Bottle” comes from a full-page book plate image taken from “Animal Sagacity”, edited by Mrs S.C.Hall, and published by S.W.Partridge, circa 1866. As the caption suggests, this picture is about a Rat and an Oil-Bottle, in this case, an Oil-Bottle that hung from a lathe and was used to oil the parts. The lathe operator, a Silversmith named Mr Bramhall, from Clerkenwell,  had noticed that the oil-bottle seemed to be drained of its contents,so he resolved to wait and watch one day to see who it was who was taking his oil. To his great astonishment, he watch as a rat emerged from his hole, place himself on the edge of the lathe, and then popped its tail into the bottle, drawing it out and licking off the oil. It continued to do this until almost every drop of oil was extracted from the bottle..and then made off! An amusing true story of the sagacity of a rat! Available in A4 and A3 sizing options.