JWM Chamberlain Collection

Stupendous Triumph of the Hairdresser’s Art

Stupendous Triumph of the Hairdresser’s Art
Stupendous Triumph of the Hairdresser’s Art reverse view
Reverse view

The December 29, 1866, issue of Punch, Or the London Charivari, shows the image that no doubt inspired JWM Chamberlain to paint and interpret, in colour, his image of this fashion-conscious woman and her equally fashionably turned-out horse.

Original “Stupendous Triumph of the Hairdresser’s Art” cartoon from Punch, December 29, 1866
Original “Stupendous Triumph of the Hairdresser’s Art” cartoon from Punch, December 29, 1866

Punch, or The London Charivari was a British weekly magazine of  humour  and  satire established in 1841 by Henry Mayhew and wood-engraver Ebenezer Landells. Historically, it was most influential in the 1840s and 1850s, when it helped to coin the term “cartoon” in its modern sense as a humorous illustration.