New South Wales Operative Bakers' Association, Eight Hour Day procession, Sydney

Abstract

Photograph of bakers' float harnessed to four horses in front of a building at the Royal Agricultural Society Showground. The showground was the usual Sydney destination for the processions until about 1920 and was where the marchers and their families would partake in sports, entertainment and speeches after the parade. The scene is populated by a number of men costumed as bakers both on the float and on the grass, as well as men in suits and some women. One baker appears to be wearing sash-like regalia. The float displays a tableau of a working bakery with painted brick walls and is adorned with sprigs of flowers, possibly wisteria, and triangular flags. The horses, which would have been hired for the occasion are decorated with ornate harnesses, nickelled mounts, bells and ribbons. The building in the background has an ornate façade with a row of arched windows, semicircular and pillared insets into the roof and a curved bell-topped tower.