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Alfred Pearse (British, 1855-1933).

The Amazing Adventures Of Louis De Rougemont [In Australasia]

c1899. Colour lithograph, signed in image lower right, 74.6 x 49.5cm. Repaired slight tears and creases to edges. Linen-backed.

Text includes “Wide World Magazine. Truth is stranger than fiction. Eyre & Spottiswoode, Lith., London.” The image depicts adventurer Louis de Rougemont telling stories about Queen Victoria to the Australian Aborigines. Poster artist Alfred Pearse also illustrated de Rougemont's stories, which were published in the magazine.

From August 1898 to May 1899 Wide World Magazine serialised The Adventures of Louis de Rougemont, an ‘imposter’ explorer who claimed to have travelled around Australasia. His real name was Henri Louis Grin (Swiss, 1847-1921), and his articles focused on the “amazing” experiences he had while supposedly spending thirty-odd years as a castaway among the Aboriginal people of North-West and Central Australia. Grin was discovered to be a hoaxer who “had collected tidbits for his exploits from the Reading Room of the British Museum.” Despite his notoriety, Grin continued to travel around the world as an attraction. Ref: ADB; Wiki.

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Item #CL189-2

Price (AUD): $2,950.00  other currencies