Original woodblock illustrated poster for Wombwell's Royal Menagerie de [KANGAROO] [WOMBWELL, George] - 1843

London: printed by J.W. Peel, circa, 1843. Large poster, 750 x 253 mm., assorted letterpress with bold woodblock illustrations; folded with a touch of peripheral wear, neat restoration, but a remarkably well preserved example. The famous Wombwell's menagerie. An attractive survival from the golden age of Victorian travelling shows: a poster from Wombwell's travelling menagerie featuring striking woodblock prints of exotic animals including a kangaroo, zebra, rhinoceros, leopard and an elephant.George Wombwell 1777-1850 was one of the most successful travelling zoological exhibitors of Victorian England. Separating fact from fiction surrounding Wombwell's life is difficult, a task compounded by his ceaseless self-promotion and aggrandisement. Like many showmen of the era, Wombwell fraternised with a broad cross section of society, from tavern drunks to the Royal family. Indeed, he is credited with advising Prince Albert on the wellbeing of the Royal hounds.We do know that Wombwell was successful. A shoemaker by trade, Wombwell moved to London in the early nineteenth century. His first foray was the purchase two boa constrictors from a vessel newly arrived from Rio de Janeiro for the then considerable sum of £75. Nonetheless, he soon made a handsome profit displaying the fearsome snakes at local taverns. From this humble beginning, Wombwell built one of the largest travelling animal displays of the early Victorian era. Word spread amongst sailors and travellers that he paid ready money for live animals, and Wombwell personally met incoming ships from Australia, Africa and South America to purchase specimens for the show. By 1839 the menagerie exceeded a dozen wagons and was supplemented by a brass band. Wombwell tried his hand at breeding animals, and was the first to successfully rear a lion in England.Travelling menageries were an important medium of popular education and they certainly attracted huge crowds who gained an opportunity to witness exotic animals such as the kangaroo firsthand. Given the relatively recent discovery of Australia, marsupials and similar animals continued to excite widespread curiosity.By virtue of their ephemeral nature posters such as this example rarely survive. This copy has been carefully preserved, and bears two manuscript notes to the margins reading "Hull Fair, 1843" and "Mr. Wombwell attended Bartholomew fair many years"