3-056-297 - The London Archives (City of London)/Heritage Images

Lantum Ethiopian Serenaders, c1840s. Illustration of a minstrel show group advertising their performance at the Egyptian Hall in Piccadilly, London. A minstrel show was an American form of racist entertainment developed in the early 19th century. Each show consisted of 'comic' skits, variety acts, dancing, and music performances that depicted stereotypes of people of African descent. The shows were mostly performed by white people in make-up or 'blackface', for the purpose of demeaning and dehumanising African Americans.