Carnival Collection

2024 Notting Hill Carnival

The Goose Fair, Nottingham- Arthur Spooner

Great Western Hotel, Cliff Road, Newquay, Cornwall. Early 1900s
A heavy circus waggon drawn by six horses outside the Great Western Hotel in Newquay. Possibly from the Bostock and Wombwell Menagerie

Great Western Hotel, Cliff Road, Newquay, Cornwall. Early 1900s
An elephant pulling a wagon from the Bostock and Wombwell Circus and Menagerie, followed by two camels, near the Great Western Hotel in Newquay

Two ladies in blue and gold masks, Venice Carnival, Venice, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Veneto, Italy, Europe

The Gondo-liar by Leon Heron
A gondolier who, according to the pun in the title, is less than honest, reaches over his lady passenger as if to kiss her. A large moon hangs over the Venetian canal. Date: 1930

Cliff Road, Newquay, Cornwall. Early 1900s
A line of two elephants and three camels passing Newquay Railway Station. There is a man in costume riding the second elephant. Possibly from the Bostock and Wombwell Menagerie. Photographer: Unknown

The Triumph of the Archduchess Isabella (1556-1633) in the Brussels Ommeganck of
WMA69871 The Triumph of the Archduchess Isabella (1556-1633) in the Brussels Ommeganck of Sunday 31st May 1615 (oil on canvas) (see 75629 for detail) by Alsloot

The Fight Between Carnival and Lent. Found in the collection of Art History Museum, Vienne

The carnival in the port of Spain, Trinidad, 1888. People cavort in fancy dress through the street, some playing banjos, others brandishing what looks like bladders on sticks

Ninots Burn Fallas Festival Valencia
Ninots burn on the last night of the Fallas Festival in Valencia on March 19, 2014

Pulborough Hospital Parade, 13 August 1933
Photograph by George Garland Garland Collection West Sussex Record Office Ref No: Garland N7724

Carnival, Trinidad, West Indies, Caribbean, Central America

Carnival of Basel (Basler Fasnacht), Basel, Canton of Basel City, Switzerland, Europe

Bolivia-Carnival-Oruro
A member of the Negritos del Pagador fraternity dances during the inaugural parade of the Carnival of Oruro, one of UNESCOs Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity

Lady and gentleman in red and white masks, Venice Carnival, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Moon and Sun carnival mask decorations, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Trinidad Carnival Band
An oil drum band playing festive music at the annual Port of Spain Carnival, Trinidad, West Indies. Date: 1968

Backyard carnival, 1800s
Children putting on a circus in the backyarrd, 1800s. Hand-colored halftone reproduction of a 19th-century illustration

Venice, Veneto, Italy; A masked character in front of the Palazzo dei Dogi during Carnival

Carnival in Venice by C. H. Shepard
Glowing and colourful scene showing various masked revellers enjoying the Carnival in Venice

Drum band Olodum performing in Pelourinho during carnival, Bahia, Brazil, South America

Twelfth Night Revels in the Great Hall, Haddon Hall, Derbyshire
STC87430 Twelfth Night Revels in the Great Hall, Haddon Hall, Derbyshire, from Architecture of the Middle Ages, 1838 (litho) by Nash

Carnival Venice Italy Masked Costumes

Costume and masks during Venice Carnival, Venice, UNESCO World Heritage Site, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Carnival, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Guy Fawkes Carnival
Carnival with fireworks on November Fifth at Bridgwater, Somerset

Doffing the Mask
Doffing the mask !

A Regatta on the Grand Canal, c. 1735 (oil on canvas)
BAL122610 A Regatta on the Grand Canal, c.1735 (oil on canvas) by Canaletto, Antonio (1697-1768) (studio of); 117.2x186.7 cm; National Gallery, London, UK; Italian, out of copyright

Carnival, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Father Christmas / Romford
Father Christmas having a jolly time with Miss Romford and her friend at the Romford Carnival

Great Western Hotel, Cliff Road, Newquay, Cornwall. Early 1900s
A procession for a fair or carnival, with two horse drawn vehicles outside the Great Western Hotel in Newquay. There are three figures dressed in costumes on the right hand cart

Fundraising funfair med01_01_0493
Soho Square Gardens, Westminster, Greater London. Nurses waving from the merry-go-round at The Soho Fair and Market. Photographed for the Topical Press Agency Ltd in July 1939

Soho Fair and Carnival started to-day with a record entry in the the Carnival procession and the waiters race. (Picture shows) Carnival procession driving through the streets. 11th July 1960

A woman in a feather Venetian mask poses during the Venice Carnival, Burano, Venice, Venato, Italy

Italy, Veneto, Carnival of Venice

The Carnival, Rayleigh, England
The Carnival, Rayleigh, near Basildon/Leigh-on-Sea, Essex, England. Date: 1908

The first ever "Notting Hill carnival", created in response to the previous
The first ever " Notting Hill carnival", created in response to the previous years racial riots in the area and the state of race relations at the time

Carnival scene, 1832. Creator: Boilly, Louis-Leopold (1761-1845)
Carnival scene, 1832. Found in the Collection of The Ramsbury Manor Foundation

Masks and costumes, Carnival, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Russian Ice Mountain on the Admiralty Square in St. Petersburg, 1850s. Private Collection

The Frost Fair of the winter of 1683-4 on the Thames
XYC189129 The Frost Fair of the winter of 1683-4 on the Thames, with Old London Bridge in the Distance

Christmas crackers box label
Label for a box of Batgers Carnival crackers featuring a couple in fancy dress, he dressed as Harlequin, playing a ukelele and a banjo

Portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots, c.1550-59 (oil on wood)
8617890 Portrait of Mary, Queen of Scots, c.1550-59 (oil on wood) by Anonymous; National Museum, Krakow, Poland; Photo © Fine Art Images

Portrait in carnival costumes, Torino Carnival Festival Italy. Date of Photograph:1910-1920

The Carnival of Venice, 1926 (lithograph)
XEE4154763 The Carnival of Venice, 1926 (lithograph) by Brunelleschi, Umberto (1879-1949); Private Collection; Stefano Bianchetti

Carinval Dance at the Devonshire Park, Eastbourne
Advert for a Carnival Dance in the Winter Garden ballroom at the Devonshire Park, Eastbourne, 1920 Date: 1920

Dressing for the Carnival, 1877. Creator: Winslow Homer
Dressing for the Carnival, 1877

Leaving the Masqued Ball. Artist: Garcia y Ramos, Jose (1852-1912)
Leaving the Masqued Ball. Found in the collection of Museo Carmen Thyssen, Malaga

Casino (Il ridotto), Second Half of the 18th cen Artist: Longhi, Pietro, (Circle of)
Casino (Il ridotto), Second Half of the 18th cen.. Found in the collection of the Rijksmuseum, Amsterdam

Carnival Party 1906
The champagne seems to be taking its toll at this carnival party as a pretty young woman gazes wistfully, eyed by a monocled gent behind her. Date: 1906

UNMASKED
Unmasked ! Date: 1907

Carnival Venice Italy Masked Costumes

The Carnival of Oruro, Bolivia
The Carnival of Oruro - a religious festival (dating back over 2000 years) in Oruro, Bolivia - one of UNESCOs Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity

Hastings Front and pier. Crowds out watching the carnival floats. June 1949

Lady in gold, Venice Carnival, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Carnival, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Masked faces and costumes at the Venice Carnival, with gondolas on waterfront and San Giorgio Maggiore behind, Venice, Veneto, Italy, Europe

Ice canoe races on the St. Lawrence River during winter carnival, Quebec, Canada, North America

Postcard with illustration by Chiostri, 1920s party scene or carnival with a harlequin and Columbine Date: 1920s

A sketch of a couple attending a carnival, Germany, 1924
A sketch of a couple attending a carnival in fancy dress, Germany, 1924 Date: 1924

Carnival Ball at the Royal Albert Hall
Cover of brochure for the Carnival Ball at the Royal Albert Hall, 12th November 1925 with a Jazz Age illustration of two people in fancy dress Date: 1925

Victor G Ginn & Co, catalogue (front cover)
Victor G Ginn & Co, High Holborn, London, catalogue (front cover), Price List of Carnival Novelties. 1939

Carnival! Day of madness: disguising, confetti and coils for the carnival party
XEE4186927 Carnival! Day of madness: disguising, confetti and coils for the carnival party

Letter J: Jocrisse. Engraving in "Alphabet masquerade". New Epinal imaging
DUV4208228 Letter J: Jocrisse. Engraving in " Alphabet masquerade". New Epinal imaging. Printing-lithography Pinot et Sagaire, editors, Epinal, second half of the 19th century

Theatre National de l Opera, Grand bal de la Mi-Careme, 1921. Private Collection

Catherine the Great Visiting the Ice Mountain in Saint Petersburg, 1788. From a private collection

At the Skating Carnival - Pretty lady reveller with a broom
At the Skating Carnival - Pretty lady reveller wearing a very stylish black dress with red floral pattern with a broom. Date: 1905

Greetings to you all - A pretty skater leads a Pierrot and other revellers onto the ice. She holds a long stick onto which an orange Chinese lantern is attached. Date: 1905

Horse-drawn float in carnival, Eastbourne, Sussex
Horse-drawn float led by Jim Wicking in a carnival at Eastbourne, Sussex. circa 1962

GUTIERREZ SOLANA, Jos鮠Masks
GUTIERREZ SOLANA, Jos頨 1886-1945). Masks. Expressionism. Oil on canvas. Private Collection

Chocolate box design, lady in carnival mask
Chocolate box design, featuring the head and shoulders of a smiling lady in a carnival mask. Date: 20th century

The Frost Fair of the winter of 1683-84 on the Thames
XJF360231 The Frost Fair of the winter of 1683-84 on the Thames, with Old London Bridge in the Distance

Carnival Scene or the Minuet by TIEPOLO, Giovanni Domenico (1727-1804). Baroque art. Oil on canvas

The Belle of the Ball - a young girl in a fantastic fancy dress frock dancing at the carnival. A Christmas postcard Date: circa 1910s

The Graphic Christmas Number 1926 front cover
Front cover of The Graphic Christmas Number 1926 featuring an illustration depicting party goers arriving at a fancy dress ball

Notting Hill Carnival crowd

Joan Crawford / 1931
JOAN CRAWFORD American film actress having a ball of a time

Navy Pier Ferris Wheel, Chicago Illinois, United States of America, North America

Brazil, Rio de Janeiro, crowds on Ipanema beach during carnival time

Kalibo, Aklan, Western Visayas, Philippines. A participant in the Ati-atihan festival wearing brighly-colored hand made costume made from recycled and natural materials

A woman in a beautiful costume poses during the Venice Carnival, Venice; Veneto; Italy

A woman in a feather Venetian mask poses with a glass ball during the Venice Carnival, Burano, Venice, Venato, Italy

For sale as Licensed Images

Choose your image, Select your licence and Download the media

"Carnival: A Celebration of Color, Culture, and Tradition" Step right up and immerse yourself in the vibrant world of carnival. From The Goose Fair in Nottingham to the Venice Carnival, these festivities have captivated people for centuries. In Arthur Spooner's iconic photograph, two ladies adorned with blue and gold masks transport us to the enchanting streets of Venice - a UNESCO World Heritage Site where history comes alive. But carnival is not limited to Europe alone. Twelfth Night Revels at Haddon Hall in Derbyshire showcase England's rich heritage as revellers gather in the Great Hall for a night of merriment. Meanwhile, across the sea in Newquay, Cornwall during the early 1900s, locals flocked to Cliff Road's Great Western Hotel to revel in seaside fun. Art has also paid homage to this joyous occasion throughout history. Pieter Bruegel's masterpiece "The Fight Between Carnival and Lent" depicts a battle between indulgence and abstinence - an allegory that resonates even today. Leon Heron's whimsical painting "The Gondo-liar" captures the playful spirit with its colorful characters dancing through Venetian canals. Traveling further south brings us to Trinidad, where Port of Spain transforms into a kaleidoscope of music and dance during their annual carnival celebration. The energy is infectious as locals sway to calypso beats while showcasing elaborate costumes that rival those seen on any grand stage. Valencia's Fallas Festival takes center stage with its towering Ninots Burn - giant sculptures that are set ablaze amidst cheers from spectators. This fiery tradition symbolizes new beginnings as old structures make way for fresh creations. Even smaller communities like Pulborough Hospital Parade hold their own unique carnivals; reminding us that this festive spirit knows no boundaries or limitations when it comes to spreading joy among all walks of life.