Charlie Keith (1836-1895)
Photograph
ca.1870 (photographed), 1896-1895 (made)
ca.1870 (photographed), 1896-1895 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Charlie Keith (1836-1895) was a distinguished clown who ran his own touring circus. The Department of Theatre & Performance at the V & A owns a similar costume to the one he is shown wearing in this photograph, and an advertisement for Charlie Keith's Circus in The Southport Critic,15 June 1878, features an engraving of him wearing another.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | Charlie Keith (1836-1895) (generic title) |
| Materials and techniques | Photograph |
| Brief description | Sepia photograph of the Victorian clown and circus owner Charlie Keith (1836-1895) |
| Physical description | Sepia photograph of the clown, Charlie Keith, full length, standing beside a curtain. He wears an elaborately decorated costume, with his name 'KEITH' at the waist. |
| Dimensions |
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| Credit line | Given by David Fitzroy |
| Object history | Charlie Keith (1836-1895) was a distinguished clown who ran his own touring circus. This photograph was given to the V & A by Keith's great-grandson, David Fitzroy, who also gave the collections a fine example of a printed and embroidered costume worn by Keith, similar to the one in the photograph. |
| Summary | Charlie Keith (1836-1895) was a distinguished clown who ran his own touring circus. The Department of Theatre & Performance at the V & A owns a similar costume to the one he is shown wearing in this photograph, and an advertisement for Charlie Keith's Circus in The Southport Critic,15 June 1878, features an engraving of him wearing another. |
| Associated objects |
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| Bibliographic reference | Charlie Keith The Roving English Clown, by David Fitzroy. Privately printed edition, 1998, available in the Theatre Museum library. Also Momus 31 October 1878, Charlie Keith's Circus. Also Southport Critic 15 June and 3 August 1878. |
| Collection | |
| Accession number | S.145-2012 |
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| Record created | February 28, 2012 |
| Record URL |
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