The Siege of Troy or The Giant Horse of Sinon thumbnail 1
Not currently on display at the V&A

The Siege of Troy or The Giant Horse of Sinon

Poster
1833 (printed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Poster for The Siege of Troy or The Giant Horse of Sinon, Astley's Circus, 1833. This poster is advertising an equine spectacle at Astley's Circus, Westminster Bridge Road, London on 29 April 1833. A large woodcut image on a poster was a novel addition at this date and a real draw for the many illiterate people who populated London. Philip Astley, whose circus this poster advertised, was particularly astute at publicity. He even adopted the French technique of displaying posters on an advertising cart that could be towed through the streets.

Delve deeper

Discover more about this object
read Theatre posters – an illustrated history
read A short history of the poster A rich and accessible art form, our collection of pictoral posters charts global concerns, popular tastes and artistic and technological developments across two centuries.

Object details

Categories
Object type
TitleThe Siege of Troy or The Giant Horse of Sinon (assigned by artist)
Materials and techniques
Woodcut and letterpress
Brief description
Poster for The Siege of Troy or The Giant Horse of Sinon, Astley's Circus, 1833. Woodcut and letterpress printed by Thomas Romney.
Physical description
A printed poster advertising an equine spectacle at Astley's Circus, Westminster Bridge Road, London on 29 April 1833. The centre of the poster has a large horse with its right front leg raised. A small man wearing Gladiator clothing is trying to climb the horse's left front leg. The sides of the poster are text that is printed in red ink, which is advertising the programme of events during the spectacle.
Dimensions
  • Height: 75cm
  • Width: 51cm
Subjects depicted
Summary
Poster for The Siege of Troy or The Giant Horse of Sinon, Astley's Circus, 1833. This poster is advertising an equine spectacle at Astley's Circus, Westminster Bridge Road, London on 29 April 1833. A large woodcut image on a poster was a novel addition at this date and a real draw for the many illiterate people who populated London. Philip Astley, whose circus this poster advertised, was particularly astute at publicity. He even adopted the French technique of displaying posters on an advertising cart that could be towed through the streets.
Collection
Accession number
S.2-1983

About this object record

Explore the Collections contains over a million catalogue records, and over half a million images. It is a working database that includes information compiled over the life of the museum. Some of our records may contain offensive and discriminatory language, or reflect outdated ideas, practice and analysis. We are committed to addressing these issues, and to review and update our records accordingly.

You can write to us to suggest improvements to the record.

Suggest feedback

Record createdFebruary 18, 2003
Record URL
Download as: JSONIIIF Manifest