Monstrosities of 1822

George Cruikshank's etching brilliantly juxtaposes the strollers in the Park against Achilles's giant nude statue in the background. The houses of Park Lane are shown on the right signalling the location as Hyde Park. 'The Monstrosities' was a series published annually from 1816 to 1828 to satirise the extravagant costume worn by fashionable figures.

The image is artistically and socially balanced with the two absurd dandies on the left wearing trousers which balloon out at the hips and bell-shaped hats advancing towards two overdressed ladies on the right. The latter are shown with a distinctive pointed toe walk, leaning back and pulling up their long frilled skirts in contrast to the figures who stooped in prints of 1817. Cruikshank clearly liked the large Achilles statue as it reappeared in 'Making Decent!!' 1822 which lampooned the reforming zeal of William Wilberforce.