C.S. Miller, Printer
Handbill Advertising a Dramatic Lecture on Polar Exploration Held in Alburtis, PA, 1874
Letterpress with graphite
4 3/4 x 11 1/2 inches
A fascinating handbill advertising a lecture on 'the Polar World'. Held at the Lock Ridge Church in Alburtis, PA, in November of 1874. According to the text, the evening included...
A fascinating handbill advertising a lecture on "the Polar World". Held at the Lock Ridge Church in Alburtis, PA, in November of 1874.
According to the text, the evening included graphic descriptions of "the perils and dangers of navigation among the Ice-fields", "the Home of the Innuits, their manners, customs, and religion", "an immense ice-floa 40 miles in width", "hunting the Polar Bear by moonlight", "making a meal of the dogs" (sad!) and more.
One intriguing aspect is that it is unclear exactly who gave the lecture, as they are identified on the handbill only as "Tricotrin". This is presumably a reference to the 1869 novel "Tricotrin: The Story of a Waif and Stray." Due to the novel's popularity, Tricotrin became a term used to describe a certain kind of Bohemian wanderer unshackled from conventional society. As well, while the evening's subjects closely mirror those covered in Georg Hartwig's popular 1869 account "The Polar World", a few seem to come solely from the mind of "Tricotrin". These sections include "Carl Steinco scaling an Ice-berg" and "Paul Amythist and the Walrus" two names which we can find no other reference to. Worthy of further exploration, perhaps.
On the back there is, for some reason, a short hand-written recipe for ginger snaps.
According to the text, the evening included graphic descriptions of "the perils and dangers of navigation among the Ice-fields", "the Home of the Innuits, their manners, customs, and religion", "an immense ice-floa 40 miles in width", "hunting the Polar Bear by moonlight", "making a meal of the dogs" (sad!) and more.
One intriguing aspect is that it is unclear exactly who gave the lecture, as they are identified on the handbill only as "Tricotrin". This is presumably a reference to the 1869 novel "Tricotrin: The Story of a Waif and Stray." Due to the novel's popularity, Tricotrin became a term used to describe a certain kind of Bohemian wanderer unshackled from conventional society. As well, while the evening's subjects closely mirror those covered in Georg Hartwig's popular 1869 account "The Polar World", a few seem to come solely from the mind of "Tricotrin". These sections include "Carl Steinco scaling an Ice-berg" and "Paul Amythist and the Walrus" two names which we can find no other reference to. Worthy of further exploration, perhaps.
On the back there is, for some reason, a short hand-written recipe for ginger snaps.