The Tunnel
Paper Peepshow
1825 (published)
1825 (published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
The Thames Tunnel was one of the most popular British subjects for paper peepshows, and its enduring association with this kind of optical device can still be judged from one of its modern names, the ‘tunnel book’ (this term is most often used in the United States). The paper peepshow’s accordion shape would suggest a natural link to the form of the Tunnel, as the expanded bellows effectively create the depth impression that echoes the Tunnel archways. When we look through the peep-hole of this work, we can see pedestrians and vehicles promenading in the bright underground passage.
The construction of the Thames Tunnel connecting Wapping on the north with Rotherhithe on the south was authorised in 1824. Work began on the Rotherhithe shaft in March 1825, and the first Thames Tunnel paper peepshow appeared as early as 16 June of the same year, showing how the finished work would look. Although the Tunnel officially opened on 25 March, 1843, the publishers’ interest in the topic would continue into the 1860s.
Similar to the Great Exhibition, the Thames Tunnel also spurred great public excitement both at home and abroad, and the paper peepshow is but one part of the huge souvenir market this engineering feat gave rise to. Published on 16 June, 1825, this work is one of the earliest known paper peepshows of the Tunnel. Not only was the design on the slipcase and front-face copied by other publishers, the content on the cut-out panels was also recycled over and over again. In Gestetner 199, for instance, the slipcase and the front-face are almost the exact copy. Images on the cut-out panels are also highly similar, but with the left and right side reversed. Other paper peepshows in the collection that copy the design of this work include Gestetner 196, Gestetner 198 and Gestetner 200.
Published before the Tunnel was completed, this paper peepshow depicts the Tunnel as imagined by the publisher. The horse-drawn carriages shown in the paper peepshow, for instance, were never able to enter the Tunnel in reality, as a ramp was never built.
The construction of the Thames Tunnel connecting Wapping on the north with Rotherhithe on the south was authorised in 1824. Work began on the Rotherhithe shaft in March 1825, and the first Thames Tunnel paper peepshow appeared as early as 16 June of the same year, showing how the finished work would look. Although the Tunnel officially opened on 25 March, 1843, the publishers’ interest in the topic would continue into the 1860s.
Similar to the Great Exhibition, the Thames Tunnel also spurred great public excitement both at home and abroad, and the paper peepshow is but one part of the huge souvenir market this engineering feat gave rise to. Published on 16 June, 1825, this work is one of the earliest known paper peepshows of the Tunnel. Not only was the design on the slipcase and front-face copied by other publishers, the content on the cut-out panels was also recycled over and over again. In Gestetner 199, for instance, the slipcase and the front-face are almost the exact copy. Images on the cut-out panels are also highly similar, but with the left and right side reversed. Other paper peepshows in the collection that copy the design of this work include Gestetner 196, Gestetner 198 and Gestetner 200.
Published before the Tunnel was completed, this paper peepshow depicts the Tunnel as imagined by the publisher. The horse-drawn carriages shown in the paper peepshow, for instance, were never able to enter the Tunnel in reality, as a ramp was never built.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | The Tunnel (published title) |
| Materials and techniques | |
| Brief description | The Tunnel, Brown, T., 1825 |
| Physical description | Accordion-style paper peepshow of the Thames Tunnel imagined by the publisher as it would appear when completed. 5 cut-out panels. 1 peep-hole. Hand-coloured etching. In a slipcase. Expands to approximately 66 cm. Slipcase: a yellow label on an asparagus green background, with the title on a scroll, the imprint, and a view of a cliff crowned with a classical pavilion on the left, and river or sea in the background. Front-face: the title on a swallow-tailed scroll, surmounted by the Swordbearer’s Fur Cap, the City Mace and Sword at the bottom. An imbricated border surrounds a large oval peep-hole. Panel 1, 4 and 5: pedestrians in the left and right archways in the Thames Tunnel. Panel 2: a carriage drawn by two horses in the left archway, a man carrying two pails in the right archway. Panel 3: a man in the left archway, a man accompanying a cart in the right archway. Back panel: a brewer’s dray and several pedestrians in the left archway, and a cart with a tall load in the right archway. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Accepted under the Cultural Gifts Scheme by HM Government from the collections of Jacqueline and Jonathan Gestetner and allocated to the Victoria and Albert Museum, 2016. |
| Object history | Part of the Jacqueline and Jonathan Gestetner Collection, collected over 30 years and given to the V&A Museum through the government's Cultural Gift Scheme, 2016. |
| Summary | The Thames Tunnel was one of the most popular British subjects for paper peepshows, and its enduring association with this kind of optical device can still be judged from one of its modern names, the ‘tunnel book’ (this term is most often used in the United States). The paper peepshow’s accordion shape would suggest a natural link to the form of the Tunnel, as the expanded bellows effectively create the depth impression that echoes the Tunnel archways. When we look through the peep-hole of this work, we can see pedestrians and vehicles promenading in the bright underground passage. The construction of the Thames Tunnel connecting Wapping on the north with Rotherhithe on the south was authorised in 1824. Work began on the Rotherhithe shaft in March 1825, and the first Thames Tunnel paper peepshow appeared as early as 16 June of the same year, showing how the finished work would look. Although the Tunnel officially opened on 25 March, 1843, the publishers’ interest in the topic would continue into the 1860s. Similar to the Great Exhibition, the Thames Tunnel also spurred great public excitement both at home and abroad, and the paper peepshow is but one part of the huge souvenir market this engineering feat gave rise to. Published on 16 June, 1825, this work is one of the earliest known paper peepshows of the Tunnel. Not only was the design on the slipcase and front-face copied by other publishers, the content on the cut-out panels was also recycled over and over again. In Gestetner 199, for instance, the slipcase and the front-face are almost the exact copy. Images on the cut-out panels are also highly similar, but with the left and right side reversed. Other paper peepshows in the collection that copy the design of this work include Gestetner 196, Gestetner 198 and Gestetner 200. Published before the Tunnel was completed, this paper peepshow depicts the Tunnel as imagined by the publisher. The horse-drawn carriages shown in the paper peepshow, for instance, were never able to enter the Tunnel in reality, as a ramp was never built. |
| Bibliographic references |
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| Other number | 38041016058562 - NAL barcode |
| Collection | |
| Library number | Gestetner 195 |
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| Record created | October 18, 2017 |
| Record URL |
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