Napkin, handkerchief, serviette

Souvenir paper table napkin commemorating the Lord Mayor's show and pageant held on 9th November 1908. The napkin includes a woodcut of the new Lord Mayor Sir George Truscott and, in letterpress, a list of the streets on the route and details of the figures represented in the pageant including Shakespearean characters. The text is surrounded by a border of purple flowers.

Similar souvenir letterpress and woodcut napkins were printed for every large public, popular event, ceremony or procession that occured in London from the late 19th to mid 20th century. Quickly mass printed they often include spelling mistakes, poor grammar and even inaccurate facts. The squares were imported into London from Japan pre-printed with a decorative border in up to 5 colours and a blank central area. Burgess was one of the main printer of such napkins that would be sold for one penny (1d) by street hawkers moving amongst the huge crowds that attended such popular events. As well as providing practical information such as a programme and timetable of the day's events these napkins were also intended to be taken home and kept as a souvenir. Many were framed and used as decoration in working class homes.