[The Thames and the Thames Tunnel]
Paper Peepshow
ca. 1862 (published)
ca. 1862 (published)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
This paper peepshow would have been sold as a souvenir in the Thames Tunnel, as is made clear by the label on the front ‘A Present from the Thames Tunnel’. It is a ‘double-decker’ peepshow: through the top peep-hole, one can see boats on the Thames, while the view through the bottom hole shows visitors walking in the tunnel.
The Thames Tunnel was one of the most popular subjects for British paper peepshows, which were produced throughout the period of its construction and beyond. The Tunnel’s construction started in 1825, and after various flood accidents and a long period of suspension of work between 1828 and 1835, the Tunnel finally opened to the public on 25 March 1843. It was received with great excitement both during and immediately after its construction, which explains why it remained a popular topic for the paper peepshow for so long. Yet the glory of the Tunnel did not last for very long and, in 1865 it was sold to the East London Railway Company and converted into a railway tunnel in 1869. Today the Tunnel forms part of the London Overground network.
Typical of his production is the use of a book format rather than enclosing the peepshow in a slipcase. The signature bright blue front-face is also preserved, and could be a reference to azure, a pun on Azulay’s name. The circular prints on the front-face are a common feature of Azulay’s later works: this format allowed them to also be used in peep-eggs, another popular optical toy in the form of an alabaster egg. Through the hole at the top of the egg, the viewer saw the miniature prints inside, which could be changed with the turn of a handle. Four such prints are used here, functioning as a kind of overview of the Tunnel, prior to taking a peep.
Two of the four peep-egg prints depict the Great Eastern ship. The Great Eastern was a steamship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the son of the Tunnel’s mastermind, Marc Isambard Brunel. It was launched as the world’s largest ship in 1858 and maintained this status for half a century. The explanatory text points out that this paper peepshow could be purchased by post. This detail indicates that for those who could not travel to London, Azulay’s optical toy would still function as an effective alternative to seeing the Tunnel, even almost twenty years after its opening.
The Thames Tunnel was one of the most popular subjects for British paper peepshows, which were produced throughout the period of its construction and beyond. The Tunnel’s construction started in 1825, and after various flood accidents and a long period of suspension of work between 1828 and 1835, the Tunnel finally opened to the public on 25 March 1843. It was received with great excitement both during and immediately after its construction, which explains why it remained a popular topic for the paper peepshow for so long. Yet the glory of the Tunnel did not last for very long and, in 1865 it was sold to the East London Railway Company and converted into a railway tunnel in 1869. Today the Tunnel forms part of the London Overground network.
Typical of his production is the use of a book format rather than enclosing the peepshow in a slipcase. The signature bright blue front-face is also preserved, and could be a reference to azure, a pun on Azulay’s name. The circular prints on the front-face are a common feature of Azulay’s later works: this format allowed them to also be used in peep-eggs, another popular optical toy in the form of an alabaster egg. Through the hole at the top of the egg, the viewer saw the miniature prints inside, which could be changed with the turn of a handle. Four such prints are used here, functioning as a kind of overview of the Tunnel, prior to taking a peep.
Two of the four peep-egg prints depict the Great Eastern ship. The Great Eastern was a steamship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the son of the Tunnel’s mastermind, Marc Isambard Brunel. It was launched as the world’s largest ship in 1858 and maintained this status for half a century. The explanatory text points out that this paper peepshow could be purchased by post. This detail indicates that for those who could not travel to London, Azulay’s optical toy would still function as an effective alternative to seeing the Tunnel, even almost twenty years after its opening.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | [The Thames and the Thames Tunnel] (popular title) |
| Materials and techniques | |
| Brief description | [The Thames and the Thames Tunnel], Azulay, Bondy, ca.1862 |
| Physical description | Accordion-style two-level paper peepshow of the Thames Tunnel and the River Thames. 2 cut-out panels. 2 peep-holes. Hand-coloured lithograph. Bound inside paper boards with cloth spine. Expands to approximately 45 cm. Front cover: A circular label in the centre reads ‘A Present from the Thames Tunnel.’ On the inside is a text entitled ‘A Brief Account of the Thames Tunnel,’ which contains detailed information on the history of the Tunnel’s construction, statistics on the Tunnel, and the number of visitors. The publisher’s name at the end of the text. Front-face: four circular prints pasted on a blue background. Print 1: entrance to the Tunnel with the Thames and the Great Eastern ship above. Print 2: workers in the tunnelling shield with the Great Eastern ship above. Print 3: pedestrians in the Tunnel archway. Print 4: pedestrians in front of the Tunnel Rotherhithe entrance. The peep-holes consist of two circular openings at the bottom and one at the top. Panels 1 – 2: pedestrians in the archways of the Tunnel at the bottom, and boats on the Thames at the top. Back panel: pedestrians in the archways of the Tunnel at the bottom, and boats on the Thames at and riverside buildings at the top. The reverse side of the back panel is stuck to the ‘book cover.’ |
| 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 | This paper peepshow would have been sold as a souvenir in the Thames Tunnel, as is made clear by the label on the front ‘A Present from the Thames Tunnel’. It is a ‘double-decker’ peepshow: through the top peep-hole, one can see boats on the Thames, while the view through the bottom hole shows visitors walking in the tunnel. The Thames Tunnel was one of the most popular subjects for British paper peepshows, which were produced throughout the period of its construction and beyond. The Tunnel’s construction started in 1825, and after various flood accidents and a long period of suspension of work between 1828 and 1835, the Tunnel finally opened to the public on 25 March 1843. It was received with great excitement both during and immediately after its construction, which explains why it remained a popular topic for the paper peepshow for so long. Yet the glory of the Tunnel did not last for very long and, in 1865 it was sold to the East London Railway Company and converted into a railway tunnel in 1869. Today the Tunnel forms part of the London Overground network. Typical of his production is the use of a book format rather than enclosing the peepshow in a slipcase. The signature bright blue front-face is also preserved, and could be a reference to azure, a pun on Azulay’s name. The circular prints on the front-face are a common feature of Azulay’s later works: this format allowed them to also be used in peep-eggs, another popular optical toy in the form of an alabaster egg. Through the hole at the top of the egg, the viewer saw the miniature prints inside, which could be changed with the turn of a handle. Four such prints are used here, functioning as a kind of overview of the Tunnel, prior to taking a peep. Two of the four peep-egg prints depict the Great Eastern ship. The Great Eastern was a steamship designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the son of the Tunnel’s mastermind, Marc Isambard Brunel. It was launched as the world’s largest ship in 1858 and maintained this status for half a century. The explanatory text points out that this paper peepshow could be purchased by post. This detail indicates that for those who could not travel to London, Azulay’s optical toy would still function as an effective alternative to seeing the Tunnel, even almost twenty years after its opening. |
| Bibliographic reference | R. Hyde, Paper Peepshows. The Jacqueline and Jonathan Gestetner Collection (Woodbridge: The Antique Collectors' Club, 2015), cat. 276. |
| Other number | 38041016059123 - NAL barcode |
| Collection | |
| Library number | Gestetner 276 |
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| Record created | October 24, 2018 |
| Record URL |
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