Item #24467 English Lottery handbill with song on verso. Lottery.
English Lottery handbill with song on verso.

English Lottery handbill with song on verso.

London: Whiting, Printer, Finsbury Place, 1809. Early handbill advertises lottery ticket prizes to be drawn of 12th April 1809, for sale at Bish's, No.4 Cornhill and 9, Charing Cross. The handbill boasts capital prizes of L20,000, L25,000 and L30,000.

Printed in a variety of bold type fonts, with "Bish's" printed in the largest font. The lottery existed in Britain up to 1826, when it was abolished. Mass publicity methods of advertising with flamboyant type were used by printers of the day. The lottery was financed by the government, but responsibility for sales and ticket promotion was handled by private firms who operated on a commission basis. These lottery office keepers included Thomas Bish; most had offices in Cornhill.

Lottery publicity like this handbill used a variety of attention attracting techniques: this one prints the lyrics to the song "The Wonderful Lottery" by Michael Marvellous on the verso, to be sung to the tune of "Jolly Young Waterman".

5 3/4 x 8 3/4". Normal creasing of paper. Very good condition. Item #24467

Price: $125.00

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