Dutch Political Cartoon: New Parliament Members, 1864

This wood engraving mocks two newly elected Dutch parliamentarians through paired scenes. Left: the men awkwardly crowd into a carriage with other politicians. Right: one sits uncomfortably at a desk, apparently unprepared for legislative work. The cartoon exploits physical caricature and social embarrassment—standard tools of 19th-century print satire descending from Hogarth and Gillray. The Dutch Bilderbogen tradition adopted this caustic visual commentary on public figures, combining crude draftsmanship with sharp political observation. Such prints circulated widely, shaping public opinion while establishing visual tropes—the buffoon, the incompetent—that would define early comic illustration and eventually modern comics' use of exaggeration for political and social critique.