Description

There is much to be learnt from pictures. It was film producer and pioneer of the American animation industry Walt Disney who said, 'Of all of our inventions for mass communication, pictures still speak the most universally understood language.' And, of course, we must not forget the wider use of, 'A picture is worth a thousand words.' How wonderful it must have been to have called into Rudolph Ackermann's shop at 96 Strand, London in the 1790s to purchase something from his vast stock of military or sporting prints. And equally, in more recent times, the Parker Gallery at 2 Albemarle Street, Piccadilly where you could treat yourself to something of the old regiment to go up above the living room fireplace. A hobby, perhaps, only enjoyed by the better off. And colour plates from long out of print regimental histories, another pastime requiring the pocket to be well and truly dipped into. But here in A Guide to British Cavalry Uniforms and Badges in Old Prints, Pictures and Postcards, 1660 to 1914, we can enjoy those images. There are some 143 of them, all supported by an informative description.