Lot 103

Rare English cabinet card purchased with one of the programs for the “Original Ceylon Minstrels Grand 2nd Concert on the Quarter Deck at 8 O’Clock. P.M. Saturday – 25th June 1886. Big Penn, Manager.” Inside is the program is the names of the original players, which could possibly be traced to the ship. We found one song, “I’ll Await my Love,” which was from 1883 and Robinson Crusoe is portrayed by A. Prinkle. They were certainly creative with their costumes, and the animals are quite frightening! On the far side we see the beverage guy with some large bottles for celebration! The man on the left has a possible floatation device around his neck with the name S.S. Silvertown.

According to the website of the History of the Atlantic Cable & Undersea Communications, the ship was “Originally built to carry the whole of the cable to be laid between England and Bermuda for the Great Western Telegraph Company, the ship was going to be named Great Western. When this scheme was abandoned, the ship was named Hooper. Fitted with 3 cable tanks, all 32 ft. deep and diameters of 46 ft. 53 ft. and 51 ft., giving a coiling capacity of 88,900 cubic feet. Sold to the India Rubber, Gutta Percha and Telegraph Works in 1881 and renamed Silvertown.” The website has photographs of the ship along with numerous wonderful advertising pieces and even the ship’s clock.

The ship was one of the most prominent submarine cable-laying ships of the late 19th and early 20th centuries, laying thousands of miles of telegraph cable across the globe, including the start of the trans-Pacific cable in 1902. It is tied to East London’s Silvertown District. In 1886, the Silvertown was highly active in the expansion of global telecommunications. During this mid-1880s period, the vessel was utilized in the Second West African Expedition and performed crucial laying and repair operations in regions like Havana, Key West, and Congo. It would be fascinating for a researcher to search the history of the men in the production.

The image has lighter tones as seen but still reads well. There is obvious wear and spots but we doubt you’ll find another example of this great, rare photo and program!

Opening bid: $50