From Red Riding Hood to Cinderella, incredible black and white photos show Victorian children in fancy dress costumes for the Mayor and Mayoress of Leeds’ silver wedding ball in 1891

AMAZING photographs of Victorian children dressed in elaborate costumes and looking like they could have stepped straight out of a fairy tale have been shared online.

The youngsters dressed up for an extravagant fancy dress ball hosted by the then Mayor and Mayoress of Leeds, Mr and Mrs Alf Cooke, in celebration of their silver wedding anniversary on January 12, 1891.

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More than 190 children were invited to the ball, all dressed in a range of impressive storybook outfits which included Red Riding Hood, Dick Whittington, the Arabian Nights, Cinderella and the Snow Queen.

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More unusual costumes also included a matador, three particularly unfortunate boys who were dressed as Little Lord Fauntleroy and the inspirational Constance J. Farrar, who came dressed as a Girl Graduate - still an unconventional aspiration for girls at that time.

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Historians are appealing for anyone with any extra information about the extravagant affair or the people involved as they put the photo book on display.

These aren't the only pictures of Victorian children shared online, with these images of orphaned and abandoned kids revealing the Victorian children buried in unmarked graves.