The Wicker Colossus (1753) £20
This striking mid-18th-century copperplate engraving depicts a “Wicker Man”—a massive human-shaped structure used by the ancient Druids of Gaul for ritual sacrifice, as recorded in Julius Caesar’s accounts of the Gallic Wars.
Engraver: Cornelis Huyberts.
Source: William Duncan’s translation of The Commentaries of Caesar, published in London by Tonson, Draper, and Dodsley.
Medium: Authentic copperplate engraving on mid-18th-century paper.
Date: 1753.
Legacy: This particular 1753 illustration is widely considered one of the most influential depictions of the Wicker Man, later serving as key visual inspiration for modern folk horror.
View of Part of London as it Appeared in the Dreadful Fire in 1666 £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
A dramatic representation of the Great Fire of London, which began in Pudding Lane on 2 September 1666 and burned for four days, destroying roughly four-fifths of the medieval City. The view shows dense wooden buildings engulfed by flame, emphasizing both the speed and scale of the disaster. The Fire prompted new building regulations, the removal of overhanging timber frontages, and major works of reconstruction under Christopher Wren. It remains one of London’s defining urban traumas.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Medieval street pattern altered; major Wren rebuilding followed; Monument erected to commemorate the event.
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Blood and His Accomplices Escaping After Stealing the Crown from the Tower £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
This leaf illustrates Colonel Thomas Blood’s audacious attempt to steal the Crown Jewels from the Tower of London in 1671. Disguised as a clergyman, Blood managed to seize the regalia before being thwarted at the gate; Charles II later pardoned him to the astonishment of his contemporaries.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Scene based on historical accounts; Crown Jewels subsequently kept under heavier guard.
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Richard II Appeases the Rebels on the Death of Wat Tyler in Smithfield £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
Depicts the climactic moment of the Peasants’ Revolt of 1381, when Wat Tyler was killed during negotiations at Smithfield and the young Richard II rode forward to calm the assembled rebels. The scene highlights the volatile relationship between crown, city, and commoners during late medieval England.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Event site later redeveloped; Smithfield survives as a historic market area.
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Manner of Burning the Martyrs in Smithfield £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
A retrospective scene of Protestant martyrs executed during the Marian persecutions of 1555–1558. Smithfield had long been associated with public punishment, executions, and religious controversy.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Executions at Smithfield ceased in the seventeenth century; site later commercialised around Smithfield Market.
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View of an Ancient Shooting Match Between the Citizens of London £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
A romanticised reconstruction of medieval archery contests held by London’s trained bands and civic companies. Such competitions reinforced martial readiness and civic identity before the rise of professional standing armies. By Chamberlain’s time they had become part of a nostalgic imaginary of Old London.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Practice discontinued; imagery based on antiquarian sources.
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View of the Temporary Bridge of London on Fire in the Night of April 11th 1758 £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
Shows the destruction of a temporary timber bridge erected during works on London Bridge.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: London Bridge later rebuilt in stone and subsequently replaced in the nineteenth century.
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The Ceremony of Laying the First Stone of Blackfriars Bridge by the Lord Mayor and Aldermen of the City of London £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
Depicts the founding ceremony for Blackfriars Bridge, an important project in London’s programme of bridge-building and road improvement during the mid-eighteenth century.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Original bridge replaced in 1869; foundations remain part of Thames embankment engineering.
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Habit of the Lady Mayoress of London in 1640 and Habit of a Merchant’s Wife of London in 1640 £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
This costume plate contrasts the ceremonial dress of the Lady Mayoress with the more subdued attire of a merchant’s wife in the early Stuart period. Such images offered a visual taxonomy of urban rank, revealing how clothing signified status, gender, and civic identity. By the eighteenth century they had become antiquarian curiosities and a source for stage costuming.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Dress styles obsolete by publication; based on earlier seventeenth-century costume books.
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Habit of the Lord Mayor of London in 1640 and Habit of a Merchant of London about 1640 £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
Companion plate to the female costume leaf showing the mayoral robes, fur tippet, and chain of office denoting civic authority, alongside the sober attire of a merchant.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Mayoral regalia survives in modified form.
To purchase, email cordeliaprintsdecorativeart@gmail.com with the print title and your location. UK and international shipping available.
Bishops and Citizens Swearing Fealty to William the Conqueror £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
A historical reconstruction of oaths of fealty following the Norman Conquest of 1066. The scene emphasises the legal and ceremonial basis of early medieval kingship and the alliance between crown and church. Such prints appealed to eighteenth-century interests in constitutional antiquity and dynastic origins.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: Not a contemporary image; based on chronicle sources and antiquarian imagination.
To purchase, email cordeliaprintsdecorativeart@gmail.com with the print title and your location. UK and international shipping available.
Ancient Tournament £10 (approx. 7.5 × 11.5 in)
These views come from Henry Chamberlain’s New and Compleat History and Survey of the Cities of London and Westminster (London, c.1770), one of the earliest illustrated surveys of London.
A theatrical reconstruction of a medieval chivalric tournament, complete with armour, heraldry, and tilting. Tournaments combined military exercise with aristocratic theatre and served as a means of displaying rank and honour. By Chamberlain’s era, they existed only in prints, pageants, and memory.
Date: c. 1769–1772
Notes: No such tournaments held in Georgian London; imagery derived from earlier engravings.
To purchase, email cordeliaprintsdecorativeart@gmail.com with the print title and your location. UK and international shipping available.