Vanity Fair, Vol. 6, No. 132

Wood engraving cover from a New York satirical weekly dedicated to Civil War-era political humor. The issue features a portrait caricature of George D. Prentice, a Kentucky newspaper editor and public figure, shown seated at his desk with pen in hand. The masthead employs playful typographic treatment with decorative figures filling the letters. Vanity Fair (1859–1863) served as a vehicle for comic verse, theatrical criticism, and partisan caricature aimed at Union audiences during the secession crisis and war years. This publication established a precedent for American political comics and visual satire, mixing journalistic commentary with illustrated wit.