The Prodigal Son Wastes His Patrimony by Henry R. Robinson

Robinson, Henry R. · 1840

This colored print is an interior scene depicting a well-dressed young man walking away from a table with his hand over his eyes, apparently in disbelief and shame. Two women (of easy virtue) and three men remain at the table playing cards. A waiter or servant stands in a corner opening a bottle, while a fifth man is standing above the table with a glass in one hand and a bottle of wine or liquor in the other. Thus, the scene depicts all of the worldly vices that Victorian-era gentlemen were taught to shun: gambling, drinking, and engaging in riotous behavior.