Not currently on display at the V&A

Tinsel Print

c.1851 (printed)
Artist/Maker
Place of origin

Tinsel prints were created from etched portraits of theatrical stars in popular roles they played on the London stage. They were hand-painted in watercolour and decorated with scraps of material and tinsel additions. They were popular during the first half of the 19th century and were considered an adult, rather than a child's hobby. By the 1830s it was possible to buy the tinsel, leather and feather ornaments to go with each image.


Object details

Categories
Object type
Materials and techniques
Printed and painted paper with fabric and tinsel additions
Brief description
Madam Auriol as Columbine. Print published by John Redington; hand-decorated and tinselled by an amateur, 1851.
Physical description
Print of Madame Auriol as Columbine, dancing, with her left hand above her head, her right hand in front of her at chest height, her right leg in front of her left. The image is titled in print: 'MADAME AURIOL AS COLUMBINE' '46'. The image of Madame Auriol dancing in front of a small temple-like building and a fountain has been coloured, stuck to a card backing, decorated with scraps of cloth and tinsel by an amateur, and dated in ink '1851'.
Dimensions
  • Height: 23.6cm
  • Top width width: 21.4cm
  • Bottom width width: 21.2cm
Summary
Tinsel prints were created from etched portraits of theatrical stars in popular roles they played on the London stage. They were hand-painted in watercolour and decorated with scraps of material and tinsel additions. They were popular during the first half of the 19th century and were considered an adult, rather than a child's hobby. By the 1830s it was possible to buy the tinsel, leather and feather ornaments to go with each image.
Associated object
S.4085-2009 (Object)
Collection
Accession number
S.722-1981

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Record createdJuly 4, 2008
Record URL
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