Magic Lantern Slide- 'Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep'
This magic lantern slide is a delicately hand coloured photograph and one of a set used by travelling lanternists who dazzled and entertained in town halls across the world. There was no cheap way of printing colour photography at the time so each slide was done by hand- first by washing the slide, then preparing specially thinned paint (to allow enough light to shine through) and finally coating the results with a protective varnish. Many of these ornate slides illustrated popular music hall songs and religious hymns. This one appears to have been made for ‘Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep’ which first became popular in the mid-19th century. A full set of slides covered the entire song whose lyrics went like this….
Rock’d in the cradle of the deep
I lay me down in peace to sleep;
Secure I rest upon the wave
For thou oh Lord, hast power to save.
I know thou wilt not slight my call,
For thou dost mark the sparrow’s fall!
And calm and peaceful is my sleep
Rock’d in the cradle of the deep,
And clam and peaceful is my sleep
Rock’d in the cradle of the deep. And such the trust that still were mine
Tho’ stormy winds swept o’er the brine.
Or though the tempest’s fiery breath
Roused me from sleep to wreck and death!
In ocean cave still safe with thee,
The germ of immortality;
And calm and peaceful is my sleep
Rock’d in the cradle of the deep,
And calm and peaceful is my sleep
Rock’d in the cradle of the deep
MAVtech’s slide was made by Bamforth and Company who were based in the English town of Holmfirth. They started making lantern slides in 1883 and later branched out into silent films and seaside postcards. An online source suggests that this slide was made in 1901. At the time, Major Joseph Perry of the Salvation Army was in the midst of his sensationally popular touring shows which mixed entertainment and a religious service. When they began in the 1890s they consisted of magic lantern performances and live music but Perry later branched out into cinema. He became the most prolific filmmaker in New Zealand at the time.
There were still some magic lantern shows in 1901 and this popular Christian song would have been perfect for Perry’s tour. Newspapers reveal that Perry did host shows in Palmerston North and Wanganui in 1905, 1906 and 1907- might the slide have been shown there?
‘Rocked in the Cradle of the Deep’ was a popular song in New Zealand and was sung live at many concerts. Our reliance on shipping (and the high amount of shipwrecks in recent memory) gave the nautical theme even more interest. In Christchurch one rendition in 1897 was backed up with illustrations from a magic lantern. Did another company make a series of slides before Bamforth? Or was this slide made earlier than first thought??
