Ticket thumbnail 1
Not on display

Ticket

1804 (made)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

In the early 19th century theatre tickets were not printed on paper unless the performance was a Benefit, when the beneficiary received a percentage of the profits. For everyday performances tickets were in the form of brass or copper metal checks purchased by patrons at the box office and surrendered as they entered the auditorium. Shareholders in some theatres even received beautifully chased and engraved silver tickets which they kept, allowing them free entry for a specified number of years. Ivory tickets, or bones, were introduced in the late 1780s and were given to actors as free passes for certain nights. Opera season subscribers at King’s Theatre also had ivories or bones which they bought at a banking house in Pall Mall, inscribed with their names and the season. Unlike the metal checks, these were kept by their owners for the season and scrutinised when they got to the theatre. They usually had a hole pierced in them through which a ribbon was inserted so the subscriber hung it on to his lapel, much as a cardboard pass to a race meeting enclosure is today.

This ivory ticket is for the Duke of York's box at the King's Theatre in London's Haymarket for the 1804/5 opera season. It shows that he had Pit Box 4 which seated six people, so would have contained six arm-chairs. Six passes like this would have been issued, the details engraved, and the recesses filled with dark red ink. Originally this ivory would have been round or oblong but it has been carved into a quatrefoil shape. The Duke of York in 1804 was Prince Frederick (1763-1827), the second son of King George III and Queen Charlotte. He was commander-in-chief of the British army, immortalised in nursery rhyme as 'the grand old Duke of York' because of his various unsuccessful military exploits.

Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Engraved ivory, marked with ink
Brief description
Quatrefoil ivory token for the King's Theatre, London; pass for the pit box rented by H.R.H the Duke of York for the opera season 1804-1805
Physical description
Ivory ticket or pass to the King's Theatre engraved recto with the word 'OPERA' and the date '1804.5' and verso with the name of the owner, H.R.H. The Duke of York PIT BOX 4. The token has been carved into a quatrefoil shape.
Dimensions
  • At widest point, measured diagonally width: 4.5cm
  • At narrowest point, measured across the centre width: 3cm
  • At widest point height: 4cm
Marks and inscriptions
  • OPERA 1804.5 (Engraved recto and marked in dark red ink)
  • H.R.H. the Duke of York PIT BOX 4 6 (Engraved verso and marked in dark red ink)
Credit line
Given by Dennis Johnson
Object history
Issued to the occupants of the Duke of York's pit box at the King's Theatre, Haymarket for the opera season 1804-1805.
Association
Summary
In the early 19th century theatre tickets were not printed on paper unless the performance was a Benefit, when the beneficiary received a percentage of the profits. For everyday performances tickets were in the form of brass or copper metal checks purchased by patrons at the box office and surrendered as they entered the auditorium. Shareholders in some theatres even received beautifully chased and engraved silver tickets which they kept, allowing them free entry for a specified number of years. Ivory tickets, or bones, were introduced in the late 1780s and were given to actors as free passes for certain nights. Opera season subscribers at King’s Theatre also had ivories or bones which they bought at a banking house in Pall Mall, inscribed with their names and the season. Unlike the metal checks, these were kept by their owners for the season and scrutinised when they got to the theatre. They usually had a hole pierced in them through which a ribbon was inserted so the subscriber hung it on to his lapel, much as a cardboard pass to a race meeting enclosure is today.

This ivory ticket is for the Duke of York's box at the King's Theatre in London's Haymarket for the 1804/5 opera season. It shows that he had Pit Box 4 which seated six people, so would have contained six arm-chairs. Six passes like this would have been issued, the details engraved, and the recesses filled with dark red ink. Originally this ivory would have been round or oblong but it has been carved into a quatrefoil shape. The Duke of York in 1804 was Prince Frederick (1763-1827), the second son of King George III and Queen Charlotte. He was commander-in-chief of the British army, immortalised in nursery rhyme as 'the grand old Duke of York' because of his various unsuccessful military exploits.
Collection
Accession number
S.44-2005

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Record createdMay 19, 2005
Record URL
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