Sic transit gloria mundi, Paul Sandby, circa 1762

Satire on william pitt suggesting that his policies are a bubble that will burst. Pitt, in profile to right, sits astride a large bubble labelled "pride, conceit, patriotism, popularity" floating in the air above palace yard, westminster, a smiling sun beaming above the hall; he blows a bubble labelled, "moderation" while other bubbles float beneath him, "spanish war/changing sides [etched faintly]honesty/north america/self-importance/adulation/pension [etched faintly] vanity". A man standing on a gallows or inn sign hammers a crown turning it into a broad-brimmed hat (suggesting parliamentary rule rather than monarchy). Burst bubbles are labelled "beer/pension/taxes/blood & treasure/sincerity/changing sides"; small bubbles lettered "p/o/v/e/r/t/y" float downwards towards an unsuspecting crowd of pitt's admirers; plate 16 to 'the british antidote, or, scots scourge' (british library, grenville 18,165). 1762 etching. Date: circa 1762. Dimensions: Height: 172 mm (cropped); Width: 207 mm (cropped). Medium: paper. Depicted People: William Pitt the Elder, 1st Earl of Chatham. Collection: British Museum. Sic transit gloria mundi (BM 1868,0808.4234 2)