Pretence Collection

Common opossum {Didelphis marsupialis} playing dead as defence strategy

Berlin society continuing to dance, by order of the Kaiser, despite growing disquiet at the progress of the war
6000391 Berlin society continuing to dance, by order of the Kaiser, despite growing disquiet at the progress of the war, World War I, 1916 (colour litho) by Damblans

Mud Pies, 1873. Creator: Ludwig Knaus
Mud Pies, 1873. This evening scene shows a girl seated on a log watching children making mudpies. In the background, a swineherd tends his pigs

Faisons semblant de dormir... 19th century. Creator: Honore Daumier
Faisons semblant de dormir... 19th century. Two men pretending to sleep in order to take advantage of the other

Uncle Toby and the Widow Wadman'; after C.R.Leslie, R.A. C.1830, 1890. Creator: Unknown
Uncle Toby and the Widow Wadman'; after C.R.Leslie, R.A. C.1830, 1890. From "The Graphic. An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper", Volume 41. January to June, 1890

Playtime in the Nursery; "A Concert", 1890. Creator: Alice Mary Morgan
Playtime in the Nursery; "A Concert", 1890. From "The Graphic. An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper", Volume 42. July to December, 1890

Playtime in the Nursery; "Just like a Real Wet Day", 1890. Creator: Alice Mary Morgan
Playtime in the Nursery; "Just like a Real Wet Day", 1890. From "The Graphic. An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper", Volume 42. July to December, 1890

Dandies at Tea, 1818. Creator: Isaac Robert Cruikshank
Dandies at Tea, 1818

The Turks fire rifles behind Walter Greenway to see if he is really deaf, but not a sound does he seem to hear (litho)
3099921 The Turks fire rifles behind Walter Greenway to see if he is really deaf, but not a sound does he seem to hear (litho) by Skinner

Cupids ruse, 1792. Creator: Hans Veit Friedrich Schnorr von Carolsfeld
Cupids ruse, 1792

Little Mothers; After Miss Emily Lees, 1888. Creator: Unknown
Little Mothers; After Miss Emily Lees, 1888. From, The Graphic. An Illustrated Weekly Newspaper Volume 38. July to December, 1888

Mr. Snawley enlarges on parental instinct, illustration from Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens (1812-70)
KW259142 Mr. Snawley enlarges on parental instinct, illustration from Nicholas Nickleby by Charles Dickens (1812-70) published 1839 (litho) by Browne

The Morning Call, 1860 / 1901. Creator: Anthony & Company
The Morning Call, 1860/1901. [Children in fancy dress, pretending to be visitors]. Albumen print, stereocard, no. 120 from the series " Young Ideas"

I saw such a lovely hat today, Dear (colour litho)
3641840 I saw such a lovely hat today, Dear (colour litho) by Browne, Tom (1872-1910); Private Collection; (add.info.: I saw such a lovely hat today, Dear)

Young boy kissing the hand of a little girl (coloured photo)
5999992 Young boy kissing the hand of a little girl (coloured photo) by European Photographer, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Young boy kissing the hand of a little girl)

Men and women pretending to be posh in Blackpool (colour litho)
5999979 Men and women pretending to be posh in Blackpool (colour litho) by English School, (20th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Men and women pretending to be posh in Blackpool)

These gentlemen are so greedy... caricature from
CHT177454 These gentlemen are so greedy... caricature from Les Metamorphoses du Jour series, reprinted in 1854 (coloured engraving) by Grandville (Jean Ignace Isidore Gerard) (1803-47)

A Pic-nic in the Drawing Room, a capital thing for a Wet Day (coloured engraving)
2818061 A Pic-nic in the Drawing Room, a capital thing for a Wet Day (coloured engraving) by Leech, John (1817-64) (after); Private Collection; (add.info.: A Pic-nic in the Drawing Room)

Charles Sims, Mans last pretence of consummation painting
Mans last pretence of consummation in indifference. One of a series of Spiritual Ideas pictures by Charles Sims (1873-1928) which were exhibited at the Royal Academy in 1928

Isaac Blessing Jacob, c. 1660-70 (oil on canvas)
3545973 Isaac Blessing Jacob, c.1660-70 (oil on canvas) by Dyck, Abraham van (1635/6-72); 125x108 cm; National Museum, Stockholm, Sweden; (add.info.: In the book of Genesis)

669018

Christopher Sly, Taming of the Shrew, c. 1880 (engraving)
702467 Christopher Sly, Taming of the Shrew, c.1880 (engraving) by Orchardson, William Quiller (1832-1910); Private Collection; (add.info)

Girl with sick doll (chromolitho)
964505 Girl with sick doll (chromolitho) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Girl with sick doll. From Our Darlings, September 1883.); © Look and Learn

Boys playing soldiers with their dog in the country (chromolitho)
975878 Boys playing soldiers with their dog in the country (chromolitho) by French School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info)

Sculptures, Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, Philadelphia (b / w photo)
2920744 Sculptures, Centennial International Exhibition of 1876, Philadelphia (b/w photo) by American Photographer, (19th century); Free Library of Philadelphia; (add.info)

Hamlet tells Ophelia to go to a nunnery while pretending to be mad
IL388115 Hamlet tells Ophelia to go to a nunnery while pretending to be mad, from Hamlet by William Shakespeare, edition published by Hodder & Stoughton in 1915 (colour litho) by Simmonds, W. G

Lady Feignings Daughter
LLM455774 Lady Feignings Daughter by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Lady Feignings Daughter)

Archaic Ionian Hydria depicting Hermes pretending to be asleep, from Cerveteri, c
XIR418429 Archaic Ionian Hydria depicting Hermes pretending to be asleep, from Cerveteri, c.530 BC (pottery) by Greek, (6th century BC); Louvre, Paris

The Little Boat
BAL59537 The Little Boat by Thorburn, Robert (1816-76); Haynes Fine Art at the Bindery Galleries, Broadway; English, out of copyright

Standing for his Portrait (engraving)
6010630 Standing for his Portrait (engraving) by English School, (19th century); Private Collection; (add.info.: Standing for his Portrait)

Everyday People (lithograph)
3099551 Everyday People (lithograph) by Gibson, Charles Dana (1867-1944); Private Collection; (add.info.: Illustration for Everyday People by Charles Dana Gibson (Charles Scribner, 1904)

The Faint, c. 1744. Creator: Pietro Longhi
The Faint, c. 1744

As You Like It - Act IV Scene I - Rosalind Tutoring Orlandoin the Ceremony... 1850
As You Like It - Act IV Scene I - Rosalind Tutoring Orlando in the Ceremony of Marriage or The Mock Marriage of Orlando and Rosalind, 1850

Plate 6 from Los Caprichos : Nobody knows himself (Nadie se conoce. ), 1799
Plate 6 from Los Caprichos : Nobody knows himself (Nadie se conoce.), 1799

Quaker Gun, Centreville, Virginia, March 1862. Creator: George N. Barnard
Quaker Gun, Centreville, Virginia, March 1862

The Man who Pretends to be Asleep While the Thief Enters his House... 18th century
The Man who Pretends to be Asleep While the Thief Enters his House Becomes Drowsy and Really Falls Asleep, Folio from a Kalila wa Dimna, 18th century

Bolingbrokes False Homage to Richard II. at Flint Castle, 1836. Creators: Unknown
Bolingbrokes False Homage to Richard II. at Flint Castle, 1836. Henry Bolingbroke kneels before King Richard II at Flint Castle in Wales

L - An Alphabet by Hans Weiditz, c1520-1521, (1908). Creator: Hans Weiditz
L - An Alphabet by Hans Weiditz, c1520-1521, (1908). After designs by Durer. From " The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs, Volume 12 - October 1907 to March 1908"

Q - An Alphabet by Hans Weiditz, c1520-1521, (1908). Creator: Hans Weiditz
Q - An Alphabet by Hans Weiditz, c1520-1521, (1908). After designs by Durer. From " The Burlington Magazine for Connoisseurs, Volume 12 - October 1907 to March 1908"

The Ghost - A Christmas Frolic - Le Revenant, 1814
The Ghost - A Christmas Frolic - Le Revenant, printed 1814 (stipple engraving)

Little Red Riding Hood, 1903. From A Peep into Fairyland, by E. F. & C. Manning. [Frederick Warne & Co. London, New York, 1903]

A Swell, c1896, (1897). Artist: Philip William May
A Swell, c1896, (1897). From The Studio Volume 9. [London Offices of the Studio, London, 1897]

Mr. Braggs Equestrian Portrait, 1865. From Mr. Facey Romfords Hounds, written by Robert Smith Surtees, illustrated by John Leech and H.K. Phiz Browne. [Bradbury, Evans & Co. London, 1865]

A Ghost: L Apparition, 1798, (1905). Artist: Jacques Bonnefoy
A Ghost: L Apparition, 1798. After Richard Westall (1765-1836). From The Connoisseur Vol XL [Otto Limited, London, 1905.]

Couple exchange a love note behind the back of a cuckold
Cuckold Love - A man and a married woman exchange a love note behind the back of a fool (the womans husband, signified by the horns of a fool)

Princess eLisabeth Of France, Sister Of King Louis Xvi Presents Herself As Marie-Antoinette To Jacques Maillard During
Princess ELisabeth Of France, Sister Of King Louis Xvi Presents Herself As Marie-Antoinette To Jacques Maillard During The Storming Of The Tuileries. From A Contemporary Print

Cartoon, Anti-Saccharites, or John Bull and his Family leaving off the use of Sugar, by James Gillray. Showing John Bull and his wife (actually King George III and Queen Charlotte)

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"Pretence: A Multifaceted Art of Deception" Common opossums, masters of pretence, employ playing dead as a clever defense strategy in the wild. Cupid's ruse from 1792 by Hans Veit Friedrich Schnorr von Carolsfeld reminds us that even love can sometimes be shrouded in pretence. In an amusing cartoon titled "Anti-Saccharites, " we witness the comical world of those who pretend to dislike all things sweet. Berlin society during World War I continued to dance at the Kaiser's command, concealing their growing unease about the progress of war. Inspired by Miss Emily Lees' work, "Little Mothers" captures the tender moments when children engage in imaginative play and pretend to be nurturing parents. Mr. Snawley enlarges on parental instinct in Charles Dickens' Nicholas Nickleby, highlighting how some individuals feign affection for personal gain. The Morning Call of 1860/1901 showcases how society often masks their true intentions behind polite gestures and social formalities. "I saw such a lovely hat today, Dear" depicts a woman pretending not to notice her friend's envy-inducing fashion choice through colorful lithography. A young boy kissing the hand of a little girl captured in a colored photograph reveals innocent acts that may hint at future romantic pretences. Men and women pretending to be posh while visiting Blackpool exemplify how people adopt different personas depending on their surroundings or aspirations. "These gentlemen are so greedy. . " caricature satirizes those driven solely by self-interest without regard for others—a common form of societal pretence. A Pic-nic in the Drawing Room portrays an ingenious solution for rainy days but also highlights our inclination towards creating illusions even within familiar settings.