Légende

The 'Famous Amazons' - performances at the Crystal Palace, 1880. Illustration from an advertisement for 'Natives of Dahomey'. Depicted is an African woman wearing clothes and headdress decorated with cowrie shells and feathers, leaning on a sword. As European awareness of Africa developed in the 19th century, entrepreneurs exploited communities for their own gain. In 1893, over fifty Africans were 'exhibited' at the Crystal Palace in south-east London, including what the advert describes as 'a regiment of women warriors' known as 'The Famous Amazons', who were actually from modern-day Benin.

Date

1880

Crédit

Photo12/Heritage Images/City of London : The London Archives

Notre référence

HRM25A13_330

Model release

NA

Property release

NA

Licence

Droits gérés

Format disponible

58,9Mo (3,6Mo) / 25,6cm x 57,6cm / 3025 x 6800 (300dpi)

Mots clés

Africa building female women woman people black music arts playhouse entertainment body bodies art theatre costume shell continent clothes weapon weapons feet foot African palace performance dress performers performer traditional costume performing advertisement advertising war warrior location Victorian century advert sword barefoot clothing print blade swords cowrie shell concept poster theatrical exploitation crystal palace controversy seashell APPAREL B&W full length Amazon full-length bare feet ad warfare controversial aquatic life vaudeville scrapbook 19th century black & white black and white B W weaponry cowrie shells music hall nineteenth century ephemera the body traditional dress West African portrait scrap book Unknown freak show stage show tradition dress 19th-century clothing & dress fashion & clothing The London Archives entertainments scrapbook ethnological exposition human zoo variety act Bernhardt