LOW, 'CHANTICLEER', INK, 1958

362 by 483mm., pen and ink, signed and inscribed with title, mounted, framed and glazed, some slight spotting

Manchester Guardian, 30 December 1958

Condition is described in the main body of the cataloguing, where appropriate.
"In response to your inquiry, we are pleased to provide you with a general report of the condition of the property described above. Since we are not professional conservators or restorers, we urge you to consult with a restorer or conservator of your choice who will be better able to provide a detailed, professional report. Prospective buyers should inspect each lot to satisfy themselves as to condition and must understand that any statement made by Sotheby's is merely a subjective, qualified opinion. Prospective buyers should also refer to any Important Notices regarding this sale, which are printed in the Sale Catalogue.
NOTWITHSTANDING THIS REPORT OR ANY DISCUSSIONS CONCERNING A LOT, ALL LOTS ARE OFFERED AND SOLD AS IS" IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CONDITIONS OF BUSINESS PRINTED IN THE SALE CATALOGUE."

The dawning of 1959, signaled in Low’s cartoon by the crowing of a chanticleer in the form of the President of France, Charles de Gaulle, marked the end of the first year of the European Economic Community. The United Kingdom had been invited to participate in talks ahead of both the Treaty of Paris in 1951, which had established the European Coal and Steel Community, and the Treaty of Rome. However, they did not engage in these talks in any significant way and signed neither treaty. The refusal to sign stemmed in part from a British desire to pursue a ‘one-world economic system’ policy, with sterling as a central currency. As a result, Harold MacMillan, portrayed here as a chicken outside the farmyard fence, and the United Kingdom were on the outside of the Common Market at the start of 1959. The UK applied for membership first in 1961 and again in 1967 but were rejected on both occasions by de Gaulle. At the window of the farmhouse sits the President of the United States, Dwight D. Eisenhower, a figure increasingly separated from European politics following the failure of his proposed European Defence Community to be ratified by the French Parliament.

This image is a similar composition to a cartoon by Sir David Low published almost 16 years to the day earlier, on 29 December 1942, in the Evening Standard. Entitled ‘Chanticleer Greets the Dawn’, a cockerel representing a ‘United Fighting France’ crows at the arrival of 1943, while Charles de Gaulle and General Henri Giraud watch from the window.