Currier and Ives.

Trans-Atlantic Steamships

The Magnificent Steamship PARIS of the American Line
The Magnificent Steamship NEW YORK of the American Line
Twin-screw Steamer CAMPANIA of the Cunard Line
The Mammoth Iron Steamship GREAT EASTERN
Cunard Steamship SERVIA
The New Steamship UMBRIA of the Cunard Line
The Magnificent Steamship TEUTONIC of the White Star Lin
The Magnificent New Steamship CITY OF ROME of the Anchor Line
Twin-screw Steamer LUCANIA of the Cunard Line
The Magnificent Steamship MAJESTIC of the White Star Line

A series of 10 lithographs in original hand colour; published by Currier and Ives in New York 1880s and 1890s.

These images evoke all the excitement and majesty of trans-Atlantic steam travel in the late C19th and include some of the most famous ships ever launched.

Nathaniel Currier started printing in New York in 1835 but the business really took off when he was joined by James Ives and the firm became known as Currier and Ives from 1857 onwards. All the prints were lithographic, drawn on limestone tablets, pulled by hand and then laboriously hand painted by a team of women who oversaw one colour each and earned $6 for every 100 prints completed. The firm chronicled all aspects of American life and proudly promoted themselves as the "Grand Central Depot for Cheap and Popular Prints". Their work provides a vital pictorial chronicle of American life in the C19th. The firm was closed in 1907 and the limestone tablets were all destroyed or sold off.