Peter Robinson – The Perfecta Corset, Antique Advertising Mirror

Description

This beautiful antique mirror features an advertisement for the Perfecta Corset from the Peter Robinson department stores on Oxford Street in London. The design is Victorian in style and dates back to the 1850s. The mirror depicts a glamorous Victorian lady in an oval design with a noir effect, and it includes intricate details and a provocative finish. The walnut frame is of high quality and dates back to the 1920s. The mirror is in lovely antique condition with minimal signs of patina.

Height: 69cm
Length: 55cm
Width: 2cm

Peter Robinson was a chain of department stores with its central location at Oxford Circus in London. The store was founded in 1833 as a drapery by Peter Robinson, a Yorkshireman. Robinson quickly expanded his store space by purchasing nearby shops on Oxford Street, allowing him to create a department store known for selling fashionable women’s clothing and accessories.

1840 Robinson opened a Court & General Mourning House store at 247-249 Regent Street, known as “Black Peter Robinsons”. The store always had a brougham, harnessed with a coachman dressed in black, and lady fitters sat inside, ready to assist newly bereaved widows.

The Topshop chain debuted in 1964 as a section in a Peter Robinson branch. The flagship store building in Oxford Circus was completed in 1912 and is Grade II listed.

Interestingly, during the 1850s, John Lewis, the founder of a rival department store, worked for Peter Robinson. Lewis started as a drapery assistant but worked his way up to becoming the youngest silk buyer in London. In 1864, he declined an offer for a partnership in Robinson’s business and opened his own drapery on Oxford Street instead.