Centennial Souvenir

This souvenir handkerchief of Horticultural Hall at the 1876 Centennial Exposition in Philadelphia is unusual for its diagonal placement of the building in the center of the square. In the collection at the New York Historical Society there is a printed textile with six uncut handkerchiefs – there are views of the Art Gallery, Horticultural Hall and the Main Exposition Hall (X.93). The buildings are placed diagonally within six different borders like this example. The rendering of each building was based on large tinted lithographic views of the main buildings in the Centennial Exhibition. The lithographs were commissioned by the Centennial Board of Finance in 1874 to publicize the event and raise money for the project. Louis Aubrun was the artist who created the original lithographs of the buildings, and Thomas Hunter of Philadelphia produced multiple prints that were sold separately as souvenirs for this future tourist attraction. While the maker of this handkerchief is unknown, it is clear that an enterprising textile manufacturer saw an opportunity to produce a commemorative handkerchief based on printed source material that was readily available.