Artwork Page for Covent Garden Labourers

Details / Information for Covent Garden Labourers

Series Title: Street Life in London

Covent Garden Labourers

1877

John Thomson

(Scottish, 1837–1921)
Culture
England, 19th century
Medium
woodburytype
Measurements
Image: 11.4 x 8.6 cm (4 1/2 x 3 3/8 in.); Paper: 11.4 x 8.6 cm (4 1/2 x 3 3/8 in.); Mounted: 27 x 20.7 cm (10 5/8 x 8 1/8 in.)
Credit Line
Photography Discretionary Fund 2019.53
Public Domain
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Location
Not on view
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Did You Know?

The wholesale flower market at Covent Garden contained over 500 stands that employed around 4,000 men as growers and deliverymen.

Description

Covent Garden workers, whose day started before 5 a.m., were divided into job-workers or odd-men—who were paid for each parcel they delivered and thus received little income in the off-seasons—and a much smaller group of salaried workers who were paid year-round to create arrangements and stock and help run the stalls.
A vertically oriented, sepia-toned woodburytype depicts several men with light skin tones in a market. On our left, a man balances a large woven basket on his head. In the center, a man in a cap kneels by a crate of plants while another in a suit stands behind him. To our right, a man stands with a tall basket strapped to his back. Woven baskets and architecture fill the background.

Covent Garden Labourers

1877

John Thomson

(Scottish, 1837–1921)
England, 19th century

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