Snapshots of the Past

[Couple at fair looking at a clown and a bell ringer] – Vintage Print

[Couple at fair looking at a clown and a bell ringer], [1808] — historic print
[Couple at fair looking at a clown and a bell ringer], [1808]. Historic print from the Circus & Carnival collection.

(Originally scanned by the Library of Congress. Each image is professionally and digitally cleaned of artifacts such as color bars and extra borders prior to printing.)

Description

This historic print of [Couple at fair looking at a clown and a bell ringer] brings a moment of history to your wall. An authentic image from the Library of Congress, it carries the weight of the real historical record.

The framed print arrives ready to hang; the unframed option suits custom framing. Perfect for a home, office, library or classroom wall, and a gift with a story behind it. Free shipping in the lower 48 states. Snapshots of the Past, founded in 2001, has served tens of thousands of customers worldwide.

[Couple at fair looking at a clown and a bell ringer]

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A couple strolling through a fair stops to watch a clown and a bell ringer, two of the performers who drew crowds to temporary entertainment grounds in early nineteenth-century Britain. The print comes from William Henry Pyne's *The Costume of Great Britain*, published in London by William Miller in 1808, a series that recorded how people dressed across different ranks and occupations. Its hand coloring adds bright detail to the clothing and booths, and the plate offers a useful glimpse of how fairs looked and felt in the years before the modern circus became a fixture of public amusement.

Created / published[1808]
Medium1 print : aquatint, hand-colored.
GenreAquatints Hand-colored 1800-1810.
NotesIllus. from: The Costume of Great Britain / W.H. Pyne. London: William Miller, 1808, no. 10.
SubjectsClowns--1800-1810. Fairs--Great Britain--1800-1810.
SourceLibrary of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division
Original scan4,657 × 3,808 px · prints to 16 × 13 in at 300 dpi
ReferenceAMZ-SOTP-HPA-219644

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