This magnificent Quad Royal (50x40in) Underground poster by R.T. Cooper shows 1600 years of London transport history, all the way back to Roman Britain in 327A.D. Travelling chronologically, it begins with a Roman litter and a ceremonial ‘carruca’, or carriage, followed by a wonderous parade consisting of medieval wagons, Elizabethan carriages, Hackney coaches, sedan chairs, stagecoaches, omnibuses, steam carriages, electric trams, penny steamboats, an early taxicab, and the latest 1927 motorbus. These vehicles are filled to the brim with period-appropriate passengers and drivers interacting with each other across time. This bustling traffic jam speaks to the clamour and excitement found on London’s streets, but also to the timeless problem of traffic which had always plagued the Metropolis.

Appropriately placed on the bottom of layer of the poster, below the hustle and bustle of the city’s streets, are four panels illustrating the evolution of the Underground. The first panel depicts the Metropolitan Line in 1863, the world’s first underground railway. It shows Victorian passengers waiting on the platform at Baker Street Station for a steam engine to arrive. The second panel advances forward in time to 1890 and the opening of the City and South London Railway, the first deep-level electric railway in the world. The steam engine from the first panel has been replaced by an electric locomotive. The third panel shows the arrival of the Central London Railway in 1900 and the first use of the word ‘Tube’ to describe the Underground – the Central London Railway was known informally as the ‘Two Penny Tube’ due to its circular tunnels and inexpensive fares.

The fourth and final panel shows
a modern 1927 Underground station above the label ‘swift, safe, and comfortable
transport’. Despite the platform being busy, the noise and chaos of the streets
above is clearly absent here as passengers calmly board a train resembling our
modern Underground carriages. The station is well lit with clear signage, and a
helpful conductor can be seen assisting passengers. Amusingly, a few snippets
of advertising posters are visible on the wall behind the train, including a
1924 Gilbey’s Spey-Royal Whisky poster with the slogan ‘Worth Hunting For’.

Printed colour. [POSTERp227]