Marriage A-la-Mode, Plate I 1745

"Marriage A-la-Mode, Plate I" is a 1745 etching by Gérard Jean-Baptiste Scotin, depicting a satirical scene of a marriage contract being signed. The artwork is part of a series of six plates that offer commentary on the social ills of 18th-century British society, particularly the arranged marriage system. In the first plate, the artist highlights the financial and social aspects of a marriage agreement, with the groom preoccupied with his inheritance and the bride disinterested in the proceedings. This work is considered a satirical masterpiece, capturing the hypocrisy and corruption of the era through its sharp wit and detailed imagery. The series was immensely popular and became a defining work of the 18th-century satirical print.