Southgate Pickpocket Number One, Mulready Caricature

Southgate ‘Pickpocket’ Number One envelope. Depicting Britannia with her right eye covered by a patch as she scatters her messengers, plus references to the war with China, and a postman attempting in vain to deliver to a man on the gallows. Fine & unused original.

The 1840 Mulready was ridiculed by contemporaries for its overly elaborate design and many caricature envelopes were produced by publishers including Fores', Spooner, Southgate, and Menzies. Their ridicule proved so effective that it was decided to stop producing the Mulready just two months after its release.