‘Vanity Fair’ was an English magazine published weekly in London between 1868 and 1914 and considered to be the literary and social voice of Victorian and Edwardian Britain. The magazine’s founder, Thomas Gibson Bowles (1841-1922), was brought up in a bohemian household and after a short period in the civil service became a journalist. In 1868 he began his own society journal and called it ‘Vanity Fair’. On 30 January 1869 he introduced the first full-paged coloured caricature, of Benjamin Disraeli, and sales never looked back. Each was accompanied by a witty and sometimes biting biographical sketch. In the words of Matthews and Mellini it was ‘the most successful Society magazine in the history of English journalism’. Famous artists who contributed are Sir Leslie Ward (1851-1922), who studied at Eton and then the Royal Academy and published under the pen name Spy, for who Vanity Fair will remain synonymous. He also contributed to the ‘World Magazine’ 1910-11. Others include Carlo Pellegrini (1839-89), Max Beerbohm (1872-1956), James Tissot (1836-1902) and the American Thomas Nast (1840-1902).

The artist here is Wallace Hester (1866-1942) who signed ‘Hester’. A noted caricaturist, he was the son of an engraver. In early 1913 the magazine was sold and a notice was issued stating “notice printed that due to change in ownership and editorship, no caricature was to be published the week of 12 February 1913”. In reality a print had already been made of Algernon Hastings Neale which was never published. This is that lithograph offered here. Matthews & Mellini (1982); Savory (1979).