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05692 — London No. 39 Strand: M. Darly 1771. Ninety-Six Hand Colored Etched Plates Lampooning Contemporary Fashion and Manners<br /> Scarce Ladies and Macaronies depicted by Mary Darly the Mother of Pictorial Satire<br /> <br /> DARLY Mary and Matthew. 24 Caricatures by Several Ladies Gentlemen Artists &c. 1771. & Vol II of Caricatures Macaronies & Characters by Sundry Ladies Gentlemen Artists & c. 1772. & Vol III of Macaronies Characters Caricatures &c Design'd by the Greatest Personages Artists & c. 1772. & Vol IV of Macaronies Characters Caricatures & c. by M. Darly. 1773.<br /> <br /> First edition. Four octavo volumes bound in two 8 3/4 x 5 1/2 inches; 222 x 140 mm. Four hand-colored decorative titles one leaf of engraved text in volume 1 and ninety-six vividly hand-colored etched plates. All plates mounted on stubs and interleaved. Some very occasional and mainly marginal spots lower blank margin of plate 12 in volume I with light stain plates 2 & 3 in volume II and plate 8 in volume III with expertly repaired marginal tear. Still the finest and most complete example of this great rarity that we have ever seen.<br /> <br /> Early twentieth-century dark brown morocco by Rivière. Covers elaborately paneled in gilt with a gilt center lozenge spines with five raised bands elaborately decorated and lettered in gilt in compartments gilt board edges and turn-ins all edges gilt marbled endpapers. With the armorial bookplate of The Duke of Gloucester on front paste-downs.<br /> <br /> First edition complete of this 18th century collection of caricatures satirizing the fashionable manners of contemporary London society particularly its dandies known as "macaronis." Created by the husband-and-wife team Matthew fl. 1741-1778 and Mary Darly fl. 1756-1779 these prints pioneered a new British genre of caricature. Each features a single figure set against a plain background with identity conveyed through dress pose and a few well-chosen props. The term macaroni prints aptly reflects their inspiration-caricature drawings by Pier Leone Ghezzi which Grand Tourists brought back from Rome. This substantial collection includes contributions from several notable London artists such as James Sayer Matthias Darly H. W. Bunbury Sir Edward Newenham Elizabeth Bridgetta Gulston J. Williams and Edward Topham.<br /> <br /> The "macaroni" was a prominent social archetype in 18th-century England representing a flamboyant effeminate and fashion-obsessed young man. Noted for their extravagant adoption of Italian and French styles macaronis were distinguished by their elaborate clothing meticulous grooming and ostentatious mannerisms - often seen as lacking in substance or seriousness. By the 1770s "macaroni" had become a popular slang term for a dandy or fashion victim.<br /> <br /> Matthew Darly was a respected designer and printseller known for his involvement in publishing Robert Manwaring's The Chair-Maker's Guide 1766 and Chippendale's The Gentleman's and Cabinet-Maker's Director 1754. He also collaborated with ornithologist George Edwards on A New Book of Chinese Designs 1754. In 1749 Matthew was questioned by the government regarding the sale of satirical prints mocking the Duke of Cumberland. He admitted to acquiring a hundred many of which had been sold by his wife in exchange for a book of ornament-likely his own recently published New Book of Ornament 1749 ODNB. By 1762 Mary Darly had taken on the role of publisher for satirical prints though the exact date of their marriage remains uncertain. It is possible she was the same wife referenced in 1749 as she earlier described herself as a "Fun Merchant at the Acorn in Ryder's Court Fleet Street." However there is reason to believe she may have been Matthews' second wife. By 1766 the couple had firmly established their business at 39 Strand.<br /> <br /> As political tensions escalated in the early 1770s caricaturists shifted their focus from attacking political and aristocratic figures to ridiculing the exaggerated fashions and mannerisms of the macaronis. This publication proved highly popular prompting a reprint in 1776. True to her bold style Mary Darly advertised it as "the most entertaining Work ever published in Europe."<br /> <br /> Despite their contemporary wide popularity and broad distribution and their importance in the history of British caricature the albums of Mary Darly are of phenomenal scarcity. Of the volumes under notice OCLC/KVK locate just three copies of the first volume 1771: Yale University Library University of Texas Harry Ransom & University of Virginia and three copies of the second volume 1772: Los Angeles County Museum of Art Harvard University and Princeton University.<br /> <br /> Provenance: Prince Henry Duke of Gloucester 1900-74 bookplates collector and member of the British royal family being the third son of King George V and Queen Mary. [London] No. 39 Strand: M. Darly, 1771 unknown