PUPPETRY

An attractive piece of juvenile ephemera, printed in black on one side of a piece of 23.5 x 36.5 cm wove paper. In good condition, folded twice. The document is excessively scarce, no other copy having been traced, and little has been learnt about the advertiser. In 1919 Punch carried an advertisement for ‘Punch and Judy, Conjuring, Ventriloquism, &c.’ from ‘James Portland, the Conjuror and Children’s Entertainer’. Four years later the ‘Model Engineer’ carried several advertisements from Portland as a supplier of ebonite.

16pp., landscape 8vo. Stapled in cream printed wraps, printed in black red, grey, yellow and blue, with caricature by Guillaume on cover showing a lady performer on a chair with a glove puppet of a gentleman. Worn and aged, with rusted staples, and wrappers detached. The sixteen pages of the catalogue are printed in light-blue and yellow on shiny art paper, and consist entirely of captioned photographs of waxworks, with no accompanying text.

CARD: Addressed to 'Barry Duncan Esq. | 11, St Martin's Court | London | W.C.2'. In good condition, lightly aged, with 'Puppet Master' letterhead in red ink, with illustration of Mr Punch. He thanks him for being 'attentive' in sending cuttings. LETTER: 1p., 4to. On aged and creased paper. With cancelled 'Puppet Master' letterhead. Addressed to 'B. D.' Sending payment for hired items, and discussing a translation 'done a week ago for Salzburg Marionettes'. Speaking of Edinburgh he writes: 'I like this city v. much - some fine bookshops - but no playbills'.