W.E. Stephens & Co.’s Bock Beer, dating from 1880, turns a straightforward beverage advertisement into an elaborate theatrical encounter. Four fashionably dressed women gather around a goat posed upon a flower-decked plinth, while the principal figure, resplendent in patterned pink, presents a glass of beer on a tray. Warm reds, rose pinks and cream dominate the composition, relieved by touches of green, blue and gold. The result is at once elegant and knowingly playful: a commercial announcement staged with all the decorative abundance of a period tableau.

Produced by an American firm active in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the poster belongs to an expanding culture of colour advertising. Chromolithography allowed commercial printers to build images from multiple colours, creating the rich tonal effects and bright contrasts needed to command attention in shops, saloons and other public settings. The goat is more than an eccentric mascot. In German, Bock means a male goat, and the animal became a familiar emblem for bock beer, giving advertisers an immediate visual pun through which to make the drink memorable.

A closer look

The composition is vertically arranged but animated by a series of glances, gestures and overlaps. At the centre-left, the woman bearing the drink leans towards the goat, her pale tray marking out the glass against the busier surrounding colours. Light catches the translucent beer and the floral ornament beside it, making this small commercial detail the point towards which the surrounding pageantry ultimately leads. Her pink gown is covered with delicate flower-like motifs, its patterned surface contrasting with the smoother fabrics worn by the figures above.

On the right, the goat forms the poster’s whimsical centre of gravity. It stands elevated on a plinth and wears a decorative cloth, treated less like farm livestock than a participant in a ceremonial presentation. The floral adornments around its platform soften the architecture beneath it and visually connect the animal to the women’s ornate costumes. Three further figures occupy the upper portion of the design, their elaborate gowns producing a cascade of folds, trimmings and contrasting colour. By stacking the figures across different planes, the designer creates depth without sacrificing the poster’s immediate, emblematic clarity.

The background remains comparatively diffuse, composed of softly blended hues that allow the sharply described costumes, faces and goat to come forward. At the bottom edge, the words “BOCK BEER” appear in large, decorative serif lettering. This emphatic inscription anchors an otherwise airy composition, ensuring that the product name remains unmistakable beneath the more picturesque scene. The contrast between ornamental fantasy and blunt typographic clarity is central to the poster’s effectiveness.

Context and significance

During the 1880s, increasingly accessible colour-printing processes transformed the appearance of commercial imagery. Advertisements could offer not only information but spectacle: carefully dressed figures, saturated colour, humour and decorative detail all became tools for establishing a distinctive identity. Bock Beer exemplifies that shift. Rather than showing brewing or consumption in an everyday setting, it surrounds the drink with costume, flowers and a personified animal emblem, creating a small visual narrative around the product.

Its lasting interest lies in this fusion of salesmanship and ornament. Every element serves the advertisement—from the raised glass and conspicuous goat to the bold lettering—yet the abundance of patterned fabric, floral detail and softly modelled colour gives the design an appeal beyond its original commercial purpose. It is a vivid example of how late nineteenth-century advertising could be informative, decorative and gently comic at once.

Choosing the right size and finish

Artwork can feel intimate at smaller sizes and dramatically more architectural at larger ones. Use the room preview, model image and size guide to see how the proportions and scale will work in your space.

If you need an exact size, specialist framing or help planning a larger display, ask our workshop for advice.

The model in the listing images is holding the 18x24in (45x60cm) version of this art print.

Where personalisation is available, you can add a short title or dedication, or one considered visual detail. See examples of personalised artwork.

Choose Original to retain the colour and character of the source artwork, or Aged for a warmer, more antique appearance. See examples of our Aged artwork.

Every piece is produced to archival standards using fade-resistant pigment inks on acid-free matte art paper. Choose an art print, framed art print or framed canvas using the finish options above.

Framed art prints use crystal-clear optical acrylic for excellent clarity, lower weight and safer delivery than glass. Each piece arrives professionally framed and ready to hang.

Selected artworks can be produced at statement sizes up to 3 metres (10ft). Custom sizing and specialist framing are also available. If the exact option you need is not listed, contact our workshop.

This artwork is also available as a float framed canvas, sometimes known as a shadow gap framed canvas or canvas floater. The work is printed on artist's cotton canvas and then stretched over a handmade box frame. We then "float" the canvas inside a wooden frame, which is available in a range of colours (black, dark brown, oak, antique gold and white). This is a wonderful way to present an art print without glazing in front. See some examples of float framed canvas art and explore the differences between my different finishes.