Luke Honey Ltd has dated this piece to the 19th Century.
the lithographed proscenium mounted on wood, and stencil-coloured, with an elaborate neo-Grecian design to the front, mounted Sphinxes to the top, painted stage, six reversible side drops and reversible backdrop, red cloth curtain (operated by a cord), tin footlights and 12 lithographed characters from the operetta, 'Die Canarienprinzessein', by Charles Lecocq, mounted on wooden bases and operated by vertical wire slides.
Height: 50cm
Width: 43cm
Depth: 39cm
Reference: Peter Baldwin. 'Toy Theatres of the World', Zwemmer 1992, pp. 80- 82 for very similar toy theatres by Adolf Engel of Berlin.
A magnificent toy theatre by Adolf Engel. "Berlin continued to be a centre for paper theatre publishing throughout the nineteenth century. Amongst the better known were L. Steffan (1830), Carl Hellriegel (c. 1840), F. Guillaume (1840), E. Buttner (c. 1860) and Adolf Engel (c. 1880).
Similarly, pediments would contain certain imposing scenes from classical mythology.." (From Peter Baldwin's "Toy Theatres of the World, pp. 81-82).
Luke Honey Ltd has dated this piece to the 19th Century.
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Rare Toy Theatre by Adolf Engel, circa 1880
