Search results (Showing 0 - 100 of 612)

England; Britain; Poverty; Naval; Education.

A Useful Manufacture: The Raw Material Worked Up. The Burning of the Royal Navy training ship 'Goliath', 1876. Destitute boys from the London streets and workhouses were given places on board naval training ships such as 'Chichester', 'Arethusa', 'Shaftesbury' and 'Goliath' and trained to become sailors. When fire broke out on the 'Goliath', because of their training, the boys knew their stations and responded to command and were saved. Cartoon by John Tenniel (1820-1914) from Punch (London, 8 January 1876) showing John Bull rescuing the boys from poverty, left, and the boys being resuced from the fire, right.

Music; Musician

Johannes Brahms (1833-1897) German composer, as a young man. Halftone from a photograph.

British

'Ideal and Real': William Henry Smith (1825-1891), son of William Henry Smith (1792-1865), as Secretary of State for War as he might be seen by the Germans, and how he really was. English businessman and politician, he joined his father's newsagent business in 1846 and introduced the selling of books and newspapers at railway stations. Elected Conservative Member of Parliament for Westminster in 1868. In 1877 he was appointed First Lord of the Admiralty and is caricatured as Sir Joseph Porter who, in the Gilbert and Sullivan operetta HMS Pinafore, sings 'I always voted at my party's call, /And I never thought for myself at all./I thought so little, they rewarded me/By making me the Ruler of the Queen's Navee. During his three years is this position he was known as Pinafore Smith. Cartoon by Harry Furniss (1854-1925) from Punch (London, 23 October 1886).

Music; Musician

Entries from opposite pages of the Miller zu Aichholz children's guestbook, 9 August 1891. On left Carl Goldmark (1830-1915) has written opening theme of Brahms' G Major string quartet, signing it C. Goldmark. On right Johannes Brahms' (1833-1897) exaggeratedly punctuated, underlined and scrawled riposte beginning Leave the room!.

Literature

Heinrich Mann (1871-1950) German novelist. Elder brother of the novelist Thomas Mann. From a sketch dated 1934.

Art; British; River; Egypt

?The Nile at the Second Cataract. Watercolour by John Gardner Wilkinson (1797-1875) British traveller and archaeologist, 'the Father of British Egyptology'.

British; Ivention; Textile; Industrial; Revolution.

English inventor Lewis Paul's (d1759) cylinder wool carding machine and needle stick. Engraving after his specification drawing for the machine which he patented in 1748. From Great Industries of Great Britain (London, c1889).

Theatre

Sarah's Tiger: Sarah Bernhardt (born Henriette Rosine Bernard - 1844-1923) the great French actress had a penchant for exotic pets. The cartoonist here shows a small boy terrfied by her pet tiger. Engraving from The Strand Magazine London, 1891.

Royalty; European

Leopold II of Belgium (1835-1909). Reigned from 1865. 'Un roi constituionnel' cartoon by 'Coide' (JJ Tissot - 1836-1902) for Vanity Fair (London, 9 September 1869). This shows Leopold clasping the wealth of industrious Belgium while keeping a wary eye on the jackboot of Germany and the foot of France, Belgium's threatening neighbours. Chromolithograph.

British; Literature; Poetry

John Kitto (1805-1854) Cornish-born English author and missionary. Became deaf in 1817. Produced the Pictorial Bible (1838). Woodcut c1860.

Maximilian I (1459-1519), Holy Roman Emperor from 1493. Maximilian meeting the embassy from Vasili (Basil) IV (1479-1533) son of Ivan III, Grand Prince of Russia from 1505.

British; Lifeboat; Service; Shipping; Rescue

George Stephenson (1781-1848) English mechanical engineer and railway pioneer, born at Wylam, near Newcastle upon Tyne, Northumberland. Stephenson instructing the navvies constructing the Liverpool and Manchester Railway, England, which was opened in September 1830. From The Triumphs of Steam by Henry Frith (London, c1898). Engraving.

Exploration.

Members of the Kennedy expedition in the Arctic building an igloo, a dwelling of ice blocks. William Kennedy (1814-1890) Canadian fur trader, was commissioned by Lady Franklin to search for her husband, Sir John Franklin, and his expedition who had disappeared while searching for the North West Passage. Engraving of 1881 based on an illustration in Kennedy's Narrative of the Second Voyage of the in Search of Sir John Franklin, 1853.

Scientist; Mathematician

George Gabriel Stokes (1819-1903) British mathematical physicist born in County Sligo, Ireland. Lucasian professor of mathematics at Cambridge University, England (1849-1903). President of the British Association for the Advancement of Science (1869).

The Maurice Affair. General Frederick Maurice (1871-1951) accused the Government of making three inaccurate statements in the House of Commons.

Medicine; Hirsute

Julia Pastrana the Mexican bearded woman (1834-1860). She suffered from congenital hirsutism combined with gingival hyperplasia. Displayed in the US as a circus attraction and the result of union between a woman and a bear, her manager made her pregnant and sold tickets for viewing the birth. After a difficult birth a hairy boy was born but died after 3 days and his mother 2 days later. Engraving after a photograph.

Natural; History; Mammal

Harvest Mouse (Micromys minutus) of the Old World. [1828]. At 6 to 7 1/2 cm it is one of the smallest rodents. From British Quadrupeds, W MacGillivray, (Edinburgh, 1828), one of the volumes in William Jardine's Naturalist's Library series. Hand-coloured engraving.

Europe; UK; United Kingdom; Britain; Scotland; The Hebrides; Hebrides; North West; Western Isles; island; Outer Hebrides; Isle of Harris; Harris; Borve; Na Buirgh; beach; view; sea; water; ocean; wave; sand; clouds; sky; rocks; stones; bay; tide; seaside; coast; seashore; shore; shoreline; location; sunshine; pattern; space; peace; peaceful; deserted; isolation; isolated; remote; seclusion; secluded; castaway; quiet; clean; pure; fresh; faraway; wild; unspoilt; wilderness; escapism; escape; visit; relax; relaxation; stop; break; nature; nadia; summer; June; horizontal; landscape; trip; travel; tourism; holidays; vacation; adventure

Borve beach, Isle of Harris, Hebrides, Scotland, UK

Britain; Transport; Rail; Power; Steam

The Iron Horse Past and Present'. Development of the railway locomotive from George Stephenson's 'Rocket' of 1829, through 'North Star' which worked on the Great Western Railway 1836-1870, to a Great Northern Railway engine of the late 1890s. From Bubbles (London, c1900) published by Dr Barnados Homes for Children. Oleograph.

Literature; printing

The Gutenberg Bible. First major book printed with a movable type printing press, marking the start of the Gutenberg Revolution and the age of the printed book. Widely hailed for its high aesthetic and artistic qualities, the book has iconic status in the West. 1450s. Only twenty-one complete copies survive, and they are considered by many sources to be the most valuable books in the world

British; Textile; Trade

Thomas Bazeley (1797-1885) English cotton manufacturer, merchant and politician. A member of the Anti-Cornlaw League. Member of Parliament for Manchester 1858-1880. Engraving from The Illustrated London News (London, 4 April 1885).

Detail from front cover of Victorian newspaper for 1876 depicting angels singing while the children sleep. Holy Christmas, Christmas eve, lute, harp, musical, slumber, dream, Christmas tree, toys, presents, bedroom, babes, heaven, cherub,

Specimen of types; Field & Tuer; Leadenhall Press; London; artistic; old style printers; typography; antique printing movement; fonts; woodcut; alphabet

Exploration; Arctic

Travelling by sledge in the Arctic. Engraving of 1881 after Stray Leaves from an Arctic Journal by Sherard Osborn (1852). Osborn (1822-1875) was a British naval officer.

A Little Princess; children's book; Frances Hodgson; publish; publisher; Burnett; collector's item; illustration; illustrated; coloured plate; first edition; page; baker's shop; Victorian; girl

Civil; Engineering

Construction of a suspension bridge at the Niagara Falls, North America. Temporary timber towers and rope basket ferry in operation, establishing a temporary link between the two banks. From The Illustrated London News(London, 17 February 1849).

David Lloyd George (1863-1945) Welsh-born British Liberal statesman and Prime Minister in the World War I coalition government, faced challenges to his position as both Prime Minister and leader of the Liberal Party.

Scientist; Medicine

Rudolph Virchow (1821-1902) German pathologist and founder of cell pathology. In later life he turned to anthropology and archaeology and collaborated with Schliemann on the excavations at Troy. Engraving from The Illustrated London News (London, 24 December 1887).

David Lloyd George (1863-1945) Welsh-born British statesman, was appointed Minister of Munitions in 1915. Here he is shown driving at full speed a cart of munitions produced by both Capital and Labour. Cartoon by Leonard Raven-Hill from Punch London.

British; Politician

Lord George Frederick Cavendish-Scott-Bentinc k, known as Lord George Bentinck (1802-1848). English Conservative statesman. Engraving after a sketch made shortly before his death. From The Illustrated London News (London, 1848).

Natural; History; Mammal

Water Vole (Arvicola terrestris), also known as the Black Water Rat. This animal is the 'Ratty' of the children's classic The Wind in the Willows, Kenneth Grahame, (London, 1908) From British Quadrupeds, W MacGillivray, (Edinburgh, 1828), one of the volumes in William Jardine's Naturalist's Library series. Hand-coloured engraving.

Agriculture; Textile

Rippling flax to remove the seeds and remains of flower heads. In the background the flax plants are being pulled (harvested). After processing, the long fibres of the stem Flax plant (Linum) were processed to produce linen. Engraving from Great Industries of Great Britain (London, c1880).

Cupid; Lights the Fuse; heart; bomb; romance; love; Saint Valentine; Bridge Tally; illustration; light my fire;

Front cover of Bridge Tally

Victorian; The Moray Minstrels Smoking Concerts; 1884; ticket; Prince's Hall; Piccadilly; theatre; music; wood engraving; masks; lyre; vine; amphora;

Wood engraving by William Harcourt Hooper after Frederick Walker

Britain; England; Government; Tax; Nineteenth century; 19th century

An artisan and his family looking forward to seeing more of the Sun when the Window Tax, imposed in 1696, would be repealed in 185. Cartoon by Richard Doyle from Punch, London, 1851.

Science; Astronomy; Scientific; Instrument.

Lord Rosse's great 72-inch (1.828m) diameter reflecting telescope of 1845, called the Leviathan of Parsonstown. Mounted between two brick walls, it could move only in a north-south direction. The Earth's rotation provided movement in an east-west direction. Engraving from A Handbook of Descriptive Astronomy by George F Chambers (Oxford, 1890). William Parsons, 3rd Earl of Rosse (1800-1867).

British; Dutch; Royalty; Religion; Christian

William III (1650-1702) King of Great Britain from 1689. The Protestant William at the Battle of the Boyne, Ireland (1690) where he defeated supporters of the deposed Roman Catholic James II. Illustration by John Leech (1817-1874) Hand-coloured wood engraving

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction

The Adventure of the Final Problem'. Professor Moriarty leaves Holmes, having failed to persuade him to stop his investigations. Illustration by Sidney E Paget (1860-1908) for 'The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' by Arthur Conan Doyle in The Strand Magazine (London, 1893). Paget was the first artist to draw Holmes.

British; English

Lady Anne Hamilton (!776-1846) Lady-in-waiting to Queen Caroline, wife of George IV of England. Hand-coloured engraving,1820

British

Thomas Denman (1779-1854) 1st Baron Denman. English lawyer, solicitor general to Queen Caroline 1820. Hand-coloured engraving, 1820

British; Literature; Poetry

Joseph Addison (1672-1719) English essayist, poet, playwright and politician. Friend of Richard Steele and Jonathan Swift. Top: The parsonage at Milston, near Amesbury, Wiltshire, England, Addison's birthplace. Bottom: Bilton House, near Rugby, Warwickshire, the house which Addison purchased in 1711. Wood engraving from The Mirror (London, 23 July 1836).

(Alexandre) Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923) French civil engineer. Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, 29 June 1889) celebrating the building of the Eiffel Tower and the opening of the Exposition Universelle in Paris, France, on 6 May 1889.

Britain; Mining; Coal; Fuel; Recreation

Coal miners or pitmen in the Northumberland and Durham Coalfield, England, enjoying a game of quoits. Engraving from The Graphic (London, 18 February 1871).

British; Literature; English; Medicine; Obstetrics; Birth; Domestic; Interior

Sarah Gamp, a character from the novel Martin Chuzzlelwit by Charles Dickens (1843-1844) drinking tea in her bed-sitting room. The name Gamp for an umbrella comes from her, and her umbrella is beside the fire. It is also a term for a midwife, which was one of her callings. Illustration by 'Phiz' (Hablot Knight Brown 1815-1892).

British; Freemasonry

John Ellis, elected Lord Mayor of London, wearing the apron of a Freemason and dancing with a turtle. Turtle soup is a traditional dish at the Lord Mayor's annual banquet. Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, 12 November 1881).

ephemera, Victorian, smuggling, sailors, pistol, cannon, sword, cutlass, theatre character, Black eyed Sue, Hand-to-hand fighting, maritime, nautical, firearms, weapons, scabbard, sheath, Courage, Bravery, ships,

Mid 19th century print published by A. Park, 47 Leonards Street, Tabernacle Walk, London. Illustration based upon the song of the same name. The song tells the tale of a smuggler who promises his lover (Black eyed Sue) that if his next journey is successful, he will mend his ways and 'anchor ashore'. But in the haze of the night the authorities catch up with his ship, and Will is shot. Following his wishes, the crew bury him on the beach in the dead of night.

British; Religion; Christian; Anglican; Education

George Granville Bradley (1821-1903) English clergyman, classicist and schoolmaster. Headmaster of Harrow School (1845-1858), Headmaster of Marlborough College (1858-1870), Dean of Westminster (1881-1902). Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, l October 1881).

Victorian illustration from Illustrated Sporting and Dramatic News, Christmas Number 1879 depicting gentleman in riding outfit running the gauntlet - being thrashed by sprigs of holly leaves wielded by fair young damsels. physical punishment, fashion,

Shipping; Salvage; Underwater

Diver being assisted into a Siebe and Gorman diving suit preparatory to diving down to a sunken wreck to recover treasure. Illustration published 1870.

Exploration; Religion; Christian

Chumah, the servant of David Livingstone (1813-1873) Scottish missionary and explorer of Africa, with his aunt. Engraving from Heroes of Britain by Edwin Hodder (London, c1880).

Simon Bolivar, the Liberator (Simon Jose Antonio de la Santisima Trinidad Bolivar Palacios y Blanco - 1783-1830) born in Caracas, Venezuela. South American revolutionary leader. Engraving.

Britain; Civil; Engineering; Shipping; Safety; Shipwreck

Second Eddystone lighthouse built on the Stone 13 miles South-east of Polperro, Cornwall, England, which claimed up to 50 ships a year. Built by the English engineer and engraver Henry Winstanley (1644-1703) in 1699, destroyed in a gale on 26 November 1703. From The Sea by F Whymper (London, c1890). Engraving.

French; Royalty

The Prince Imperial. Prince Louis Napoleon (1856-1879), son of Napoleon III of France and Empress Eugenie, as a cadet at the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. Served in the British army and was killed in the Zulu War. From The Illustrated London News (London, 6 March 1875).

British

John Holker (1828-1882) English lawyer and politician. Member of Parliament for Preston (1872-1882). Solicitor-general (1874), Attorney-general (1875-1880). Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, 24 December 1881).

One Million Mark Banknote dated Berlin 20 February , 1923. money, currency, Germany, inflation

Natural; History; Mammal

Red Squirrel (Sciurus vulgaris), tree-living rodent native to Europe and Asia. In Britain its range and numbers have diminished of the past 50 years because of competition from the Grey Squirrel (S. carolinensis) introduced from North America. From British Quadrupeds, W MacGillivray, (Edinburgh, 1828), one of the volumes in William Jardine's Naturalist's Library series. Hand-coloured engraving.

Late Victorian greeting card, Beauty, Young Woman, Violin, music, musical, fashion, costume, classical, aesthetic movement, music softens the heart, chromolithography,

Britain; Religion; Christian; Nonconformist

Rochdale, Lancashire, England. Wesleyan Methodist Chapel and School, Union Street. From William Robertson Rochdale Past and Present, Rochdale, 1876. Colour-printed engraving.

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction

'The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual'. Brunton, the butler, having worked out the answers to the questions left for each Musgrave heir, and having found the Royalist treasure, is entombed and left to die by the girl he jilted. Holmes and Watson find his body slumped over the treasure chest. From The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Conan Doyle from The Strand Magazine (London, 1893). Illustration by Sidney E Paget, the first artist to draw Sherlock Holmes. Engraving.

Britain; Transport; Rail; Steam; Civil; Engineering

Primrose Hill Tunnel near London, on the London and Birmingham Railway, opened in 1838. Engineer Robert Stephenson (1803-1859) Built through difficult London clay, the 3/4 mile tunnel cost

Exploration; Arctic

Willem Barents (d1597) Dutch navigator who led expeditions in search of the Northeast Passage. Barents' expedition in winter quarters off Novaya Zemlya butchering a Polar Bear. Engraving.

Grand Duke Sergei Alexandrovich of Russia (1857-1905), uncle of Nicholas II, assassinated in Moscow with a bomb thrown by the Revolutionary Ivan Kalayev. From Le Petit Journal, 5 March 1905.

Science; Scientist; Meteorology; Weather

Christoph Hendrick Diderick Buys-Ballot (1817-1890) Dutch meteorologist and physical chemist. Engraving from Der Stein der Weisen (Leipzig c1895).

Cobra; Indian Hooded cobra; Naja naja; Elapidae; snake-charmer; Spectacled cobra; poisonous; venomous; reptile; animal; wildlife; India; scales; fangs; venom; ophidians; Squamata; forked tongue; Animalia; Chordata; Reptilia; Serpentes; Naja;

Spectacled cobra Naja naja rearing out of basket

Britain; Astronomical; Phenomenon

Aurora Borealis or Northern Lights observed from Guildford, Surrey, England, 14 October 1870. Caused by high-speed particles ejected from the Sun, the aurora are most commonly observed during periods of maximum sunspots. From Die Naturkrafte by M Wilhelm Meyer (Leipzig, 1903). Chromolithograph.

Britain; Civil; Engineering; Shipping; Safety; Shipwreck

Sectional view of the fourth Eddystone lighthouse built on the Stone 13 miles South-east of Polperro, Cornwall, England, which claimed up to 50 ships a year. Built by the English civil engineer John Smeaton (1724-1792) beginning in 1756 it was in operat

Russia; Tsarist; France

Russian foreign policy. Nicholas II (1868-1919) Tsar of Russia from 1894, arriving at Cherbourg, France, on a state visit. From Le Petit Journal, Paris, 11 October 1896.

The Royal Piper, lithograph, Queen Victoria, Prince Albert, Blair Athol Castle, bagpipes, morning serenade, Majesty, royalty, Victorian, kilt, Scotland, Blair Castle, Blair Atholl,

Victorian hand coloured lithograph titled 'The Morning Serenade'

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction

The Adventure of the Yellow Face'. Effie Grant Munro pleading with her husband, Jack, to trust her in spite of her suspicious behaviour. From The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Conan Doyle from The Strand Magazine (London, 1893). Illustration by Sidney E Paget, the first artist to draw Sherlock Holmes. Engraving.

Exploration; Africa; Livingstone; Congo

Henry Morton Stanley (1840-1904) born John Rowlands at Denbigh, Wales, Welsh-born American journalist and explorer. Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, 28 October 1882).

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction

'The Adventure of the Yellow Face'. Jack Grant Munro, suspicious of his wife's actions, getting a cool receiption from a neighbour on whom he has called to make enquiries. From The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Conan Doyle from The Strand Magazine (London, 1893). Illustration by Sidney E Paget, the first artist to draw Sherlock Holmes. Engraving.

British; Literature; English

Henry James Byron (1834-1884) English playwright, actor and theatre manager. A prolific author of melodramas, burlesques, extravaganzas and pantomimes. Wrote a novel Our Boys (1875). Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, 3 December 1881).

Britain; England; Poverty; Destitution; Charity; Nineteenth century; 19th century

Poor Law set out regulations for Workhouses, imposing harsh conditions on inmates so that they were seen as places of last resort. The Devil watches as a child is dragged from its mother', while an Angel covers its face unable to meet the mother's pleading eyes. Cartoon from Punch, London, 1843.

1930s illustration of delightful healthy young children playing quoits. ephemera, children's games, pastimes, freshness, vigour, spirit, young, childhood, toy soldiers, rabbit, pets, bliss,

Medicine; Surgery; Pain; Anaesthesia

Surgeon and his assistants, before the introduction of anaesthetics, prepared to perform an amputation at the shoulder. Surgeon stands, left, next the assistant surgeon (behind patient). An assistant on the ground supports the arm to be removed, and the two figures standing on the right support the patient. Bell's comment on this operation was It requires decision and rapidity; and the knife is to be handled more like a sabre, than a Surgeon's scapel. Engraving from Illustrations of the Great Operations of Surgery by Charles Bell (London, 1821).

British; Scientist

Joseph Black (1728-1799) Scottish chemist, born in Bordeaux, France, son of a wine merchant. Professor of chemistry at Glasgow University. In 1757 he isolated carbon dioxide. Evolved the theory of latent heat. Engraving, 1881.

Italy; Mining; Quarrying; Food

'The Quarryman of Grisante'. The stone quarry workers (miners) are enjoying a meal of polenta and wine. The polenta has been cooked in a pot of water over the fire at the left. In the background men break down the blocks of stone. Polenta flour can be made from wheat, chestnuts or maize. Hand coloured lithograph from Italian Scenery, Manners and Customs by Buon Airetti (London, 1806).

Victorian; greeting card; Raphael Tuck & Sons; composite; caricature; Christmas season; ephemera; cartoon; comic drawing; knife and fork; cracker; cigar; plum pudding; holly; mistletoe; port; spats; feast; visual pun

English; Labour

Unrest in Russia: Revolutionary uprisings in 1905. The arrest of a strike leader in St Petersburg at the end of the 1905 uprisings. From Le Petit Journal, Paris, 24 December 1905.

vintage; dog; dogs; puppies; three; playing; countryside; fine; art; kennel; milk; landscape; nature; beautiful; animals; pets; 1911;

Vintage dog scen, 1911.

Art; Cartography

Map of 1590 engraved by Theodore de Bry after watercolour by the English colonist John White, governor of Roanoke. Virginia and coast with small islands and Roanoke at mouth of river. Secotan and Weapemeoc native lands.

Germany

German post-war utility furniture in a German home c1949.

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction

'The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual'. Dr Watson watching Sherlock Holmes going through mementoes of his old cases. From The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Conan Doyle from The Strand Magazine (London, 1893). Illustration by Sidney E Paget, the first artist to draw Sherlock Holmes. Engraving.

Hand coloured, etching, 1826, sandwich board man, advertising, Busby's, Illustrations, Scrap Books, Humorous designs, amuse, instruct, scrap booking, scrap booking, crafts, print seller, scraps, album,

Hand coloured etching dated 1826 of a sandwich board man advertising "Busby's Illustrations for Scrap Books

Britain; England; Civil; Engineering; Transport; Rail

'Hayle. St Ives in the distance', c1860. West Cornwall Railway, later part of the Great Western Railway (GWR). The boom time for the harbour and effectively the birth of the town came in the first half of the 19th century when Hayle became synonymous with mining-related industries and, above all, Harvey's. Harvey & Co. employed 1,000 men and exported Cornish beam engines all over the world. Illustration by RT Pentreath for Views of Devonshire and Cornwall by Henry Besley. (Exeter, c1860). Engraving.

Britan; Labour; Manual; Female; Child; Mining; Coal; Rich; Poor; Class; Nineteenth century

Capital and Labour': Cartoon from Punch, London, 1843, in response to Richard Horne's report of child employment. In coal mines 'labourers are obliged to go on all-fours like dogs'. The labouring poor are locked away in misery, toiling to produce the wealth that enabled 'upper classes' to live in luxury.

Victorian; Christmas; New Year; greeting card; 1858; holly & berries; mistletoe; Joel;

This small, very early Christmas card is dated by hand in ink "Dec 1858" on the reverse. Printer/publisher is A. Joel.

Christmas; greeting card; Christmas leave; sailor; uniform; naval; maritime; royal navy; boy and girl; presents; gifts;

Britain; England; Civil; Engineering; Transport; Rail

Maidenhead Bridge on the Great Western Railway, c1860. Bridge designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) to carry the GWR across the Thames at Maidenhead, Berkshire. Critics were convinced that the bridge would fall because of the breadth and flatness of the arches, 128 ft (39m) wide with a rise of 24ft 3in (7.39m) to the crown, but they were proved wrong. Opened 1839. From The Land We Live In (London, c1860)

Animal; Pet; Rescue; Refuge

Lost and Found: Little girl united with her lost pet Fox Terrier at Battersea Dogs' Home, London. A home for lost and starving dogs was opened in Holloway in 1860 and moved to Battersea, where it still is, in 1871 From Bubbles c1900 published by Dr Barnardos Homes for Children. Oleograph.

Religion; Christian; Christ; Saviour; Teacher; Preacher; Preaching; Charisma

Jesus teaching on the sea shore. Bible, New Testament, St Matthew Ch 12. From J.J. Tissot The Life of our Saviour Jesus Christ' c1890. Oleograph.

Britain; England; Civil; Engineering; Transport; Rail; Bridge; Metal

Wrought iron tubular trussed bridge over the river Wye at Chepstow, c1885. This bridge, constructed 1849-1852, was an innovative design by Isambard Kingdom Brunel (1806-1859) and the use of wrought iron tubular girders is considered to be a dummy run for his last great masterpiece, the Royal Albert bridge over the Tamar at Saltash. The Chepstow bridge carried the South Wales Railway over the Wye. Brunel was engineer to the railway. From The Popular Educator. (London, c1885).

Literature; English; Juvenile; Science; Mathematics; Education

Twice Ten are Twenty,/We shall all have plenty,/Each a slice, how very nice!/Twice ten are ?'. From The Merry Multiplication Table by Irving Montague (London c1870). Chromolithograph.

Exploration; Colonisation; Conquest.; South; America; North; America

Fernando de Soto (c1496-1542) Spanish explorer and conquistador born at Xeres (Jerez) de los Caballeros, Estramadura, Spain. A member of the Spanish expedition to Darien (1518-1520), served in Nicaragua (1527) and assisted Pizzaro in the conquest of Peru.

British; Music; Musician; Theatre

Arthur Seymour Sullivan (1842-1900) English composer, conductor and musicologist who had a long collaboration with Will Schwenck Gilbert which produced the Savoy light operas (1877-1896). Cartoon by Edward Linley Sambourne in the Punch's Fancy Portraits series from Punch (London, 30 October 1880).

Window card; Washing; Mangling; home laundry; homeworker; domestic labour; hand washing; bread line; extra income; washing day; home life; female labour; destitute; widows; housewife; women's work; work force; unskilled; poor; taking in washing; out-workers; laundresses; Family's Washing; washerwoman;

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction

'The Adventure of the Musgrave Ritual'. Reginald Musgrave, a college friend of Holmes, asking for help in clearing up the mystery of the disappearance of his butler. From The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes by Conan Doyle from The Strand Magazine (London, 1893). Illustration by Sidney E Paget, the first artist to draw Sherlock Holmes. Engraving.

Season; Spring; Parent; Sibling; rother; Sister; Boy; Girl

Mother and her children and the family's pet St Bernard dog relaxing on the Terrasse de Saint-Germain, Paris, France, inl ilac time. From Paris Brillant by 'Mars' (Maurice Bonvoisin - 1849-1912) (Paris, c1890). Lithograph.

Natural; History

The Common Mole (Talpa europea), 1828. Small burrowing mammal with distribution from Britain to Japan. From British Quadrupeds, W MacGillivray, (Edinburgh, 1828), one of the volumes in William Jardine's Naturalist's Library series. Hand-coloured engraving.

British; Literature; English; Detective; Fiction; Nineteenth century; 19th century

The Adventure of the Final Problem'. Sherlock Holmes calling on Dr Watson to ask for his help to defeat his adversary, Professor Moriarty, "? the Napoleon of crime, ?". Illustration by Sidney E Paget (1860-1908) for 'The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes' by Arthur Conan Doyle in "The Strand Magazine" (London, 1893). Paget was the first artist to draw Holmes.