Beschreibung:

Lot of 2. Rare Book of Jumbo program for a show in Richmond. Buffalo, NY: Courier Company, 1883. 10.25 x 14 in., 15pp, with woodcut illustrations of Jumbo throughout, as well as a "History of the Purchase and Importation of the Largest Elephant in the World," and several other accounts of P.T. Barnum's famous African elephant. Advertising card featuring illustration of Jumbo feeding a baby elephant Castoria, with printed caption on front, From peasant nurse to high born lady, All mothers know what's good for baby, While Jumbo, too, though not a lady, Follows suit and feeds great baby. With additional text on reverse side. 4 x 3 in. Born in the French Sudan, Jumbo (1861-1885), a male African Bush Elephant, was part of a group of captured animals imported to France and kept in the Paris Zoo, Jardin des Plantes, until 1865 when he was transferred to the London Zoo. While in London, he became a popular attraction, especially for the children, who were permitted to ride him. In November 1881, for the price of $10,000, Jumbo was sold to the Barnum & Bailey Circus. P.T. Barnum transported the elephant to New York, where he was exhibited at Madison Square Garden and was later included in a group of 21 circus elephants that crossed the Brooklyn Bridge to prove that the structure was safe within a year after a stampede on the bridge resulted in the death of a dozen people. On September 15, 1885, while in St. Thomas, Ontario, Jumbo was hit and fatally wounded by a locomotive at a railway classification yard. Following his tragic death, Barnum had portions of the elephant separated and displayed at multiple sites to attract spectators. Following this tour, Jumbo's skeleton was donated to the American Museum of Natural History in New York, his heart was sold to Cornell University, and his hide was stuffed, mounted, and traveled with Barnum's circus for two years before it was donated to Tuft's University and displayed at P.T. Barnum Hall for many years. The hide was later destroyed in an April 1975 fire, but Jumbo's legacy lives on to this day as the mascot for Tuft's University. Condition: The card is in excellent condition while the program has a few tears at the folds.