Centenaire de l'Algérie, 1830-1930 (poster by Léon Cauvy)
Colour poster for the 1930 centenary of French Algeria: a tricolour bearing an 'R F' monogram flies over Algiers harbour, where Algerian dockers and fruit-sellers work in the foreground. The flag and Republic monogram set the French state's authority over the harbour scene and the '1830 / 1930' dates.
- Date
- 1929
- Period
- Interwar
- Made by
- Commissariat général du Centenaire de l'Algérie, Algiers (French colonial administration); artist Léon Cauvy; printed by Baconnier, Algiers
- Region
- Middle East and North Africa
- Country
- French Algeria
- Medium
- Poster
- Issuer type
- State
- Regime
- Government General of Algeria
- Leader
- Pierre Bordes
- Audience
- Mixed
- Purpose
- Commemorate
- Theme
- Empire and colonialism
- Event
- Centenary of French Algeria
- Techniques
- Transfer
- Source
- Identified Openly sourced: the speaker is who they say they are
- Source
- Wikimedia Commons (reproducing BnF Gallica ark:/12148/btv1b9016630n), retrieved September 29, 2026
- Rights
- Public domain (published 1929; BnF Gallica record states 'Domaine public')
Léon Cauvy, 'Centenaire de l'Algérie', Algiers, 1929. Bibliothèque nationale de France, Gallica, via Wikimedia Commons.
Text on the object
1830 [R F monogram] 1930 L. CAUVY CENTENAIRE DE L'ALGÉRIE DU 1ER JANVIER AU 30 JUIN Commissariat Général [small print, bottom left, partly cut off] IMP BACONNIER ALGER [small print, bottom right]
1830 [R F monogram, for République Française] 1930 L. CAUVY CENTENARY OF ALGERIA FROM 1 JANUARY TO 30 JUNE General Commissariat [small print, bottom left, partly cut off] Printed by Baconnier, Algiers [small print, bottom right]
The monogram is the 'R F' of the French Republic; reading of the small print at the foot is partial. Translation is a machine translation by Claude, not verified by a fluent reader.
