An original 7×5 antique photo from a large archive of Ringling Bros. And Barnum & Bailey Circus photos acquired from the estate of a collector. This is a unique antique/vintage silver gelatin photograph — it is not a modern print. Photo Overview A magnificent 1917 street-view photograph captures the Barnum & Bailey herd of more than a dozen elaborately caparisoned Asian elephants, each bearing jeweled blankets and canopied howdahs, marching trunk-to-tail past a touring automobile and tree-lined homes during the circus’s traditional parade through town. A uniformed mahout rides the lead elephant while the rest of the column stretches into the distance, perfectly conveying the scale and spectacle that greeted American neighborhoods on show day. Before the afternoon and evening performances, Barnum & Bailey-and later the combined Ringling Bros. And Barnum & Bailey Circus-always staged a free parade to advertise their arrival, often stopping traffic and drawing crowds in every city along the rail route. 1917 was one of the last seasons before the two circuses merged in 1919, and images of the full elephant herd with ornate Indian-style howdahs are scarce because many original negatives were lost in subsequent fires. Secure this striking relic of America’s Golden Age of the circus today and add instant conversation-starting history to your collection. Text Present Back, center: ELEPHANTS-WITH-FLOWDAHS-BARNUM-BAILEY 1917. Condition : Good to very good vintage condition. Please see photos for scans of the surface. Photo may have natural curling or other imperfections from age.
