1893 World’s Fair Spittoon

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Palmer House, a Hilton Hotel

c.1893: Depicting the Black Plague - “Ring Around The Rosie”
c.1893

Depicting the Black Plague - “Ring Around The Rosie”

Name/Title

1893 World’s Fair Spittoon

Scope and Content

Ring-a-Ring-a-Roses is all about the Great Plague; the apparent whimsy being a foil for one of London’s most atavistic dreads (thanks to the Black Death). The fatalism of the rhyme is brutal: the roses are a euphemism for deadly rashes, the posies a supposed preventative measure; the a-tishoos pertain to sneezing symptoms, and the implication of everyone falling down is, well, death.

Created By

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Create Date

December 8, 2021

Updated By

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Update Date

December 8, 2021