Brownies at Waterloo
Date1988
Artist
Palmer Cox
(Canadian illustrator and author, 1840–1924)
Illustration CitationThe Brownies Abroad, by Palmer Cox (The Century Co. New York, 1899)
MediumInk on paper
Dimensionssheet: 5 9/16 × 7 1/2 in. (14.1 × 19.1 cm)
Credit LineGift of Helen Farr Sloan, 1978
Object number1978-217
On View
Not on viewClassificationsDRAWING
Label TextPalmer Cox introduced his band of cheerful sprites he called the Brownies in children's magazines beginning in the 1870s. The kind-hearted creatures were based on such characters in English and Scottish folklore. In Cox's art, they had individual ethnicities and jobs. Here, the Brownies visit a hill near Waterloo, in Belgium, scene of Napoleon's 1815 defeat. Second from left is the Napoleon-Brownie with an unhappy expression, presumably as he is challenged about his defeat.
The Brownies appeared in numerous advertisements, books, and magazine stories. They were the first American characters to be copyrighted and licensed, setting an example for Rose O'Neill's Kewpies and eventually other artists and producers such as Walt Disney. In 1900, Kodak named its inexpensive camera the Brownie, using an almost identical figure in its advertising. The company, however, did not compensate Cox.
