George

On the 28th of July 1837 Benjamin Disraeli, who went on be Prime Minister twice, won his first election to be a Member of Parliament whilst little George, wearing his best tunic and ruff collar with a soft-crowned peaked cap complete with a tassel, patiently posed to have his profile cut. One wonders what the future had in store for him?

Cut and well gilded, the silhouette is housed in the original papier-mâché frame from Clay of Covent Garden. Henry Clay first developed the technique to make these frames during the 1770s from premises in Birmingham. Success later led him to open a second workshop in the heart of London around 1800 which is where this frame originated.