Lot 8
Sells Brothers / Sole Proprietors. ca. 1893.
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Lot 8
Sells Brothers / Sole Proprietors. ca. 1893.
Estimate:
$1,200
- $1,500
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Est.
$1,200
- $1,500
Live Auction
PAI-LXXVI: Rare Posters
Live Bidding began Oct 28, 2018 at 11:00 AM EDT
ARTIST
ANONYMOUS
Category
Description
Artist: ANONYMOUS
Size: 29 7/8 x 39 3/8 in./75.8 x 100 cm
Condition: B/ Slight tears at folds and edges.
Printer: Strobridge, Cincinnati
Reference: Ref: PAI-LXXIV, 14
Key Words: Circus
The family likeness is clear in this triple portrait of the Sells Brothers, one of the first big touring circuses in the U.S. In 1862, they created a circus. It failed. Then they worked in auctions, following circuses around to take advantage of the crowds to sell their merchandise. They were the Sells Brothers, after all. After taking an interest in Cannonball George Richards, one of the first Human Cannonball acts, they grew their traveling circus from 1872 to 1895, but faced increased competition from Adam Forepaugh and Barnum & Bailey. This poster, toward the end of their reign, attests that they are "sole proprietors" in a burst of family bootstraps pride; two years later, the Sells Brothers would merge with Forepaugh.
Size: 29 7/8 x 39 3/8 in./75.8 x 100 cm
Condition: B/ Slight tears at folds and edges.
Printer: Strobridge, Cincinnati
Reference: Ref: PAI-LXXIV, 14
Key Words: Circus
The family likeness is clear in this triple portrait of the Sells Brothers, one of the first big touring circuses in the U.S. In 1862, they created a circus. It failed. Then they worked in auctions, following circuses around to take advantage of the crowds to sell their merchandise. They were the Sells Brothers, after all. After taking an interest in Cannonball George Richards, one of the first Human Cannonball acts, they grew their traveling circus from 1872 to 1895, but faced increased competition from Adam Forepaugh and Barnum & Bailey. This poster, toward the end of their reign, attests that they are "sole proprietors" in a burst of family bootstraps pride; two years later, the Sells Brothers would merge with Forepaugh.
