The Barnum and Bailey greatest show on earth--The world's largest, grandest, best, amusement institution--Total destruction of the Spanish Fleet, on the Cuban coast [...] – Vintage Print
![The Barnum and Bailey greatest show on earth--The world's largest, grandest, best, amusement institution--Total destruction of the Spanish Fleet, on the Cuban coast [...], c1898. — vintage poster](https://images.jameslantos.com/img/82/82f21ef8d4d4-L.webp)
(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
A window into the past: The Barnum and Bailey greatest show on earth--The world's largest, grandest, best, amusement institution--Total destruction of the Spanish Fleet, on the Cuban coast [...], preserved in this vintage poster. An authentic image from the Library of Congress, it carries the weight of the real historical record.
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The Barnum and Bailey greatest show on earth--The world's largest, grandest, best, amusement institution--Total destruction of the Spanish Fleet, on the Cuban coast [...]
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Rather than the usual parade of acrobats and elephants, this chromolithograph promises a staged naval battle: the "total destruction of the Spanish Fleet, on the Cuban coast." Circus promoters quickly turned the Spanish-American War of 1898 into entertainment, and this poster shows how fast current events reached the midway. The Spanish squadron was in fact destroyed off Santiago de Cuba in July 1898, a decisive American victory that made headlines across the country. The Strobridge Lithographing Company, a Cincinnati firm known for bold circus posters, printed the piece, and its vivid colors and dramatic ships were meant to draw crowds from the street.
| Created / published | c1898. |
|---|---|
| Medium | 1 print (poster) : chromolithograph. |
| Genre | Circus posters American 1890-1900.Chromolithographs Color 1890-1900. |
| Notes | Copyright by the Strobridge Lith. Co. No. 67. |
| Subjects | Barnum and Bailey--1890-1900. Spanish-American War, 1898--Naval operations--American--Cuba. Circuses & shows--1890-1900. Warships--1890-1900. Naval warfare--Cuba--1890-1900. |
| Source | Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division |
| Original scan | 1,441 × 1,135 px · prints to 5 × 4 in at 300 dpi |
| Reference | AMZ-SOTP-HPA-219052 |
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