Item Details

SEE THE WONDERS OF NATURE. WORDS DEDICATED TO WANO AND PLUTANO, THE WILD MEN OF BORNEO.

[United States: printer unidentified, ca. 1858.] [Anonymous]. 

Illustrated song sheet, 5½ × 9 inches, printed on one side only. Wood-engraved illustration above text. Contemporary manuscript ownership inscription and apparent date on verso, apparently "Oct. 16, 1858," with initials "G. W. D." and "D. W. D." (to be fully deciphered).

A souvenir song celebrating the celebrated exhibition performers known as the "Wild Men of Borneo," marketed throughout the United States during the mid-nineteenth century. Although promoted as exotic curiosities, Wano and Plutano were in fact Hiram and Barney Davis, whose exhibition became one of the best-known attractions in American museum and sideshow culture.

The contemporary manuscript notation on the reverse suggests acquisition at or near the time of exhibition, enhancing the historical interest of the piece and strengthening its association with the Davenport family.

Provenance: Contemporary Davenport family inscriptions; Estate of G. W. Davenport, Litchfield County, Connecticut.

References: To be completed (circus and museum ephemera bibliography; OCLC; AAS).