Puppet
late 19th century (made)
Puppet companies like the Barnard Troupe travelled the country in the late 19th century with canvas theatres or ‘fit-ups’, performing at fairgrounds. Company members made and dressed the puppets, wrote their scripts and performed them, bringing all types of theatre to the countryside. Harlequin and Columbine, characters that developed from the Italian Commedia dell'Arte, were stars of Regency and Victorian pantomime.
Object details
| Category | |
| Object type | |
| Materials and techniques | |
| Brief description | Marionette of Columbine, originally from the Barnard troupe, and used in a marionette pantomime. Carved and painted wood with fabric clothes. 19th century. |
| Physical description | Carved and painted wooden marionette of Columbine. Her arms are carved and partially bent. She wears a pink silk dress (bodly frais) over a stiffened gauze petticoat with many layers and stiff gauze knickers. She has a cream lace around her bodice and cream stockings to her ankles, and painted gold shoes. She has real hair and a jointed neck. She has two knee strings and two hand strings and one string above each ear - fixed to a wooden three bar control. |
| Dimensions |
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| Summary | Puppet companies like the Barnard Troupe travelled the country in the late 19th century with canvas theatres or ‘fit-ups’, performing at fairgrounds. Company members made and dressed the puppets, wrote their scripts and performed them, bringing all types of theatre to the countryside. Harlequin and Columbine, characters that developed from the Italian Commedia dell'Arte, were stars of Regency and Victorian pantomime. |
| Associated object | S.720-1990 (Object) |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.721-1990 |
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| Record created | November 17, 2005 |
| Record URL |
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