From the exhibition
John Townshend, 4th Viscount Sydney
Carlo Pellegrini · 1 May 1869

Signed Ape (Carlo Pellegrini), this plate—*Statesmen No. 13*—caricatures John Townshend, 4th Viscount Sydney, Lord Chamberlain of the Household. The caption reads: *"He received the Royal Commands and lengthened the skirts of the Ballet"*—a dry dig at Sydney's role enforcing Victorian propriety over stage performance, a function of the Lord Chamberlain's office as licensor of theatres. Pellegrini renders him in profile: a stout, jowly figure in a dark frock coat and tall silk hat, walking-stick in hand, posture combining self-importance with mild pomposity. A coronet floats upper-right, marking his peerage rank. The caricature is gentle by Pellegrini's standards—social rather than political, gently mocking bureaucratic grandeur rather than exposing scandal.
Carlo Pellegrini Public domain