Honi. Soi. Qui. Mal. Y. Pense: The Caricature Shop of G. Humphrey, 27 St. James's Street, London

Theodore Lane British
 Publisher George Humphrey British

Not on view

A crowd of boisterous Londoners is shown inspecting satires critical of Queen Caroline, the estranged wife of the recently crowned King George IV. These are displayed in the bow-front shop window of George Humphrey, a print publisher who inherited a successful business from his aunt Hannah in 1818. Humphrey supported the king in the dramatic period between 1820 and 1821 when Caroline returned to England from the Continent hoping to be recognized as consort, but was sued for divorce, barred from the coronation, collapsed and died. From the mid eighteenth century, print publishers placed newly issued satires against the panes of their shop windows to draw customers. Humorous, topical images drew viewers from all social classes and encouraged lively interaction.

Honi. Soi. Qui. Mal. Y. Pense: The Caricature Shop of G. Humphrey, 27 St. James's Street, London, Theodore Lane (British, Isleworth ca. 1800–1828 London), Hand-colored etching

This image cannot be enlarged, viewed at full screen, or downloaded.

Open Access

As part of the Met's Open Access policy, you can freely copy, modify and distribute this image, even for commercial purposes.

API

Public domain data for this object can also be accessed using the Met's Open Access API.