A Remarkable Naïvely Illustrated Halloween Masquerade Invitation for the ‘Win One Class’; 1913
Origin: English
Period: Early 20thC
Provenance: Unknown
Date: c.1913
5” x 4” folded or 5” x 8” open
The wonderfully evocative and entirely handmade Hallowe’en party invitation, dated 1913, and executed in ink on folded paper, charmingly illustrated to the cover with a witch tending a suspended cauldron, accompanied by her black cat, above the handwritten title ‘Hallowe’en Party’ to a particularly characterful anthropomorphic jack-o’-lantern, flanked by the numerals ‘19’ and ‘13’.
Condition is wonderfully untouched and commensurate with the essentially ephemeral nature of the object. The paper has separated along portions of the original folds, with associated creasing, minor edge losses, occasional staining and foxing. Despite its fragility, the principal illustrations and inscriptions survive remarkably clearly. The wear and separation do little to diminish its considerable charm and authenticity. Ephemera such as this was never intended to survive.
Opening to reveal the heading ‘Win One Class’, followed by a class motto incorporating the Biblical reference 1 Corinthians 13:8; the verse beginning ‘Charity never faileth’ in the King James Version and identifying the class teacher as apparently a Mr J. T. Fairfull. Below is an address which appears to read ‘At 42 Shooke(?) (Queen St)’, followed by a charming rhyming invitation:
‘On Thursday night — We will entertain the Season’s ghosts If you with us will take delight. At eight o’clock sharp you must meet the host — Masquerade Oct 30th’.
The final signature or inscription remains indistinct. Intriguingly, 30 October 1913 did indeed fall on a Thursday, providing excellent internal corroboration for the date given on the cover. The reference to a ‘Win One Class’, together with a named teacher, class motto and Biblical citation, strongly suggests that the invitation was created in connection with a Christian Sunday-school or Bible-class social gathering, although the precise church and location remain unidentified.
A particularly rare and atmospheric survivor of Edwardian Hallowe’en social history made all the more appealing by being an individually drawn and written invitation rather than a commercially printed card. The juxtaposition is especially fascinating: an apparently Christian class whose motto referred to Corinthians enthusiastically embracing the established Hallowe’en imagery of witchcraft, ghosts, black cats, cauldrons and jack-o’-lanterns, and inviting its members to attend in masquerade.
Both an engaging piece of folk art and an unusually intimate record of how Hallowe’en was celebrated more than a century ago.