The Wild Beast Show (Movable Panorama Book, 1890)
A Rare Shape Book with Pop-Up Cages and Transparent Aquarium by Frederick Warne
Published in London and New York by Fred. Warne & Co., 1890
Illustrated by Jessie Currie and L. Pritchard. Printed in Bavaria
11 x 15 cm (4.3 x 5.9 inches)
This charming and unusual Victorian novelty book combines several rare formats: a shape book, panorama fold-out, and movable pop-up mechanisms. Designed as a miniature traveling menagerie, each page features a die-cut animal enclosed within its own pull-out paper cage. A standout feature is the intact transparent “glass” aquarium page—a fragile and seldom-surviving element—showcasing aquatic life in a pull-out section that mimics a tank display.
Animals featured include monkeys, jaguar, hippopotamus, dromedary, giraffe, polar bears, rhinoceros, and more. Lithographed in vibrant color and constructed on heavy pasteboard, each scene reflects late-19th-century fascination with exotic animals and mechanical paper novelties.
The book was advertised in 1890 as “A Panorama of Wild Beasts, cut out and placed in movable cages,” and was part of Frederick Warne’s seasonal holiday offerings. Though related in theme to Warne’s A Day at the Zoo, this edition is smaller and more mechanically elaborate. The Wild Beast Show was advertised as “a smaller panorama” of A Day at the Zoo, priced at just 50 cents. (The Book Buyer, vol. 17, 1890, p. 480).
Condition
Very Good overall. All movable elements present and functioning. Transparent “glass cage” aquarium page is fully intact—a rare survival. Conservator notes indicate the cloth panorama binding was replaced in two sections; one bar on a cage has been professionally replaced. Minor paper loss to the front cover (right side), and a paper repair to upper left. All internal pages clean, strong, and fully operational. See photos for details.
Collector’s Corner
This title is scarce today, and particularly so in complete condition with the transparent aquarium plate intact. Though not credited on the book itself, Jessie Currie and L. Pritchard were known Warne illustrators during this period, and both brought humor and expressiveness to their animal subjects.
No institutional holdings for The Wild Beast Show are currently recorded in WorldCat or major movable book bibliographies, suggesting this title was either limited in distribution or seldom survived due to its fragile structure.
About the Publisher: Frederick Warne & Co.
Frederick Warne (1825–1901) founded Frederick Warne & Co. in 1865 after his departure from the partnership in Routledge, Warne & Routledge. The firm, based in London and New York, became known for producing high-quality children's books, including the popular Aunt Louisa series, and illustrated works by Randolph Caldecott, Kate Greenaway, and Walter Crane. In the early 20th century, the company became world-renowned for publishing Beatrix Potter's Peter Rabbit books.
In the late 19th century, Warne also explored some movable and novelty formats. These lithographed books were often printed in Bavaria and released during the holiday season, situating Warne among the first British publishers to experiment with movable mechanisms in children’s literature. All are quite scarce today.
Though later overshadowed by innovators like Meggendorfer, Warne’s early foray into movable and shape books helped lay the groundwork for the mechanical book genre.