Humpty Dumpty
Illustration
ca.1900 (made)
ca.1900 (made)
| Artist/Maker | |
| Place of origin |
Ernest Nister (1842-1909) began his publishing career in 1885 when he acquired a lithographic workshop in Nürnberg and printed books for London publishers. In 1888 he became a publisher in his own right with offices at 24 St. Bride Street, London. He appointed the writer and editor, Robert Ellice Mack, as director.
Nister specialised in high quality colour printing for children in the last quarter of the 19th century. Movable books with various mechanisms became his speciality after 1890 (when be published his first stand-up book) but he also produced numerous picture books, annuals, poetry, nursery rhymes, calendars and greetings cards. He worked with a core of writers, including Clifton Bingham and Robert Ellice Mack, and illustrators, in particular Eveline Lance, Harriett M. Bennett, Edith A. Cubitt and Rosa Petherick.
This illustration was published by Nister in his 'untearable' book, Nursery Rhymes and Pictures (no. 870a), printed in Bavaria and published in New York by E. P. Dutton & Co.
Nister specialised in high quality colour printing for children in the last quarter of the 19th century. Movable books with various mechanisms became his speciality after 1890 (when be published his first stand-up book) but he also produced numerous picture books, annuals, poetry, nursery rhymes, calendars and greetings cards. He worked with a core of writers, including Clifton Bingham and Robert Ellice Mack, and illustrators, in particular Eveline Lance, Harriett M. Bennett, Edith A. Cubitt and Rosa Petherick.
This illustration was published by Nister in his 'untearable' book, Nursery Rhymes and Pictures (no. 870a), printed in Bavaria and published in New York by E. P. Dutton & Co.
Object details
| Categories | |
| Object type | |
| Title | <u>Humpty Dumpty</u> (popular title) |
| Materials and techniques | Pen and ink and watercolour on card |
| Brief description | Watercolour drawing by Edith A. Cubitt, ca.1900; commissioned by Ernest Nister. |
| Physical description | Pen and ink and watercolour drawing on stiff card depicting the nursery rhyme, Humpty Dumpty. Humpty Dumpty sits on a brick wall playing a musical instrument. A boy wearing a red hat and a girl wearing a blue bonnet stand in front of the wall looking up at Humpty Dumpty. In the distance to the left of the drawing is a group of soldiers on horseback. In the bottom right corner is a circular inset, outlined in black, depicting Humpty Dumpty as an egg cracked open on the ground, having fallen off the wall. Egg white and egg yolk pour out from the centre of Humpty Dumpty. Mounted on card. |
| Dimensions |
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| Production type | Unique |
| Marks and inscriptions |
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| Credit line | Donated by Anne Renier and F.G. Renier. |
| Object history | Drawn by Edith A. Cubitt for an Ernest Nister publication, ca.1900. Bequeathed to the V&A in 1970 by Anne and Fernand G. Renier as part of the Renier Collection. |
| Subjects depicted | |
| Literary reference | Illustrating the nursery rhyme: Humpty Dumpty sat on a wall. Humpty Dumpty had a great fall. All the king's horses and all the king's men, Couldn't put Humpty together again. Commissioned by Ernest Nister. |
| Summary | Ernest Nister (1842-1909) began his publishing career in 1885 when he acquired a lithographic workshop in Nürnberg and printed books for London publishers. In 1888 he became a publisher in his own right with offices at 24 St. Bride Street, London. He appointed the writer and editor, Robert Ellice Mack, as director. Nister specialised in high quality colour printing for children in the last quarter of the 19th century. Movable books with various mechanisms became his speciality after 1890 (when be published his first stand-up book) but he also produced numerous picture books, annuals, poetry, nursery rhymes, calendars and greetings cards. He worked with a core of writers, including Clifton Bingham and Robert Ellice Mack, and illustrators, in particular Eveline Lance, Harriett M. Bennett, Edith A. Cubitt and Rosa Petherick. This illustration was published by Nister in his 'untearable' book, Nursery Rhymes and Pictures (no. 870a), printed in Bavaria and published in New York by E. P. Dutton & Co. |
| Other numbers |
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| Collection | |
| Library number | RENIER.277 |
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| Record created | February 19, 2008 |
| Record URL |
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